Waiting for Morning, Moving with Strength

Daily Office Readings for September 30, 2026: Psalm 119:145–176; Psalms 128, 129, and 130; Micah 2:1–13; Acts 23:23–35; Luke 7:18–35.

Today I am writing about an issue I struggle with, as I believe many of us do: waiting when making decisions and choices. In today’s Daily Office readings, Psalm 130:5–6 connected for me with Isaiah 40:31. Both are familiar scriptures, but today I saw a depth in them that I want to share.

The psalmist waits for the Lord like a watchman waiting for morning. A watchman cannot hurry the dawn, but he remains attentive, expecting it to come. The Hebrew word qavah, translated “wait,” also carries the sense of hoping and expecting. biblehub.com This image helps me see waiting as a time to stay awake to what is happening—to pray, gather the facts, seek wise counsel, and notice what may be shaping a decision.

That kind of waiting can matter when we feel pressure to act quickly. We can ask what is creating the urgency, what we know and what we are assuming, and what each choice may ask of us. We can listen to our feelings, reason, prayer, and physical needs. A spreadsheet or timeline may help us understand the facts, but it cannot tell us what matters most. Waiting gives us room to consider a choice before we commit.

Isaiah’s image of the eagle rising on renewed strength belongs with the watchman’s expectation. The verse also speaks of running without growing weary and walking without fainting. There are times when a way forward opens and we feel we can soar. There are demanding seasons when we must keep running. And there are ordinary or heavy days when faithfulness is simply walking, step by step. We may not be able to see the whole road, but we can seek enough wisdom and strength for the next step.

Together, these scriptures offer a way to approach decisions: wait with hope, remain attentive, consider the choice honestly, and move when it is time—whether the next step feels like soaring, running, or walking. They do not promise certainty or a perfect outcome. They remind me that I can seek wisdom while I wait and trust God to meet me at the pace of the journey.

What helps you wait when a decision has no guaranteed answer? What might the next faithful step look like at the pace you are in today?

Source: The Book of Common Prayer, Daily Office readings for September 30, 2026.

Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me. Teach me to wait with hope. Teach me to see clearly. Give me wisdom to discern and courage to take the next faithful step.