The Power of Yet: Trusting God When You’re Still Waiting

For the vision is yet for the appointed [future] time. It hurries toward the goal [of fulfillment]; it will not fail. Even though it delays, wait [patiently] for it, because it will certainly come; it will not delay.

Habakkuk 2:3

I recently spoke with a friend whose child had just become engaged. As we chatted, she hesitated a moment and explained her child wasn’t walking with God and was doing their own thing.

My heart immediately returned to the ache I’d felt when my child was doing his own thing.

I remembered the shock when he questioned his upbringing and began living contrary to how we’d reared him. I remembered both the embarrassment and need I felt to “explain” his behavior when people asked about him.

The enemy had not only deceived my child, but he also wanted me to feel the shame of my child’s choices so I would be less likely to ask for prayer on his behalf or feel I could bring encouragement to others in their walk with God.

I mean, if my own child wasn’t living for God, how could anyone receive truth from me?

I remembered all those feelings, and I wanted to be sure she wasn’t receiving any judgment from me.

My words to her were, “Yet can be your new best friend.”

You see, I remember when my child wasn’t living for God yet. I remember when the words he used weren’t lining up with God’s Word yet. I remember when he wasn’t sitting with me in church yet.

And I remember when he finally was.

Not Yet

I’ve had many moments where something felt a long way from where I wanted it to be. There were seasons before marriage when I was believing God for a spouse, before motherhood when I was believing God for a child, and other seasons when I was waiting for the job, the car, the house, the resouces, the courage, or the confidence I needed for the next step.

“I don’t have” and “I can’t” are words which can feel final. In those moments of waiting, what I seemed to have plenty of were doubts, fears, uncertainties, emptiness, or unfulfilled longing. Or at least, that was what the enemy wanted me to believe.

But that little three-letter word can change the whole sentence.

I wasn’t ready yet. There was something I wanted to do but couldn’t yet. I wasn’t strong or brave enough yet. I didn’t have it yet. Yet is a simple way to begin shifting our mindset. The struggle may be real, but it doesn’t get the final say. “Yet” is a word that reminds us God is still working.

Yet Leaves Growing Room

Sometimes we mistake where we are right now for where we will always be. We look at our current ability, confidence, knowledge, and circumstances thinking that’s the whole story. When we get in the Word, however, we remember that God is good, and He is still working.

The Word declares in Psalms 84:11 that God withholds no good thing from us who walk uprightly. That doesn’t mean that every desire comes the way we imagined or in our preferred timing. It means we can trust the heart of God when we do not yet understand all the details. Jeremiah 29:11 echos this same principle, that the plans He has for us a good, to give us a future and a hope.

God isn’t working to set us up for failure, and we must get and keep our thoughts in line with His Word. Yet is a way we can transition our minds to a positive outlook and then look for Scripture to back us up.

For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord bestows grace and favor and honor; No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.

Psalms 84:11

When you think of all the sun does for the earth, nothing here could even exist without it, you can get a better feel of why Psalms 84:11 is such a key verse in this conversation. Everything in this passage gives hope for any situation. No matter the circumstance, if we choose to walk with Him, we can trust that good is coming.

God has never been limited by where we are. Moses felt unqualified, Gideon too small. Peter was impulsive, Thomas had doubts. The disciples walked with Jesus in the flesh and had questions. Yet God kept calling, teaching, correcting, strengthening, and sending. He kept giving grace and opportunities for growth. And He hasn’t changed.

Yet Isn’t Denial

God knows what needs to be formed in us before some things are fulfilled through us. Not every dream is instant and we don’t see the results of every prayer quickly. Sometimes the delay means God is still preparing the person, place, provision, and timing. Our job is just to keep doing what He called us to do and stay in faith to His Word.

That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with being blatantly honest before the Lord. There’s nothing He doesn’t already know, and He created us with emotions. When you feel overwhelmed or discouraged, talk to Him. When you say, “Lord, this feels too big for me, I don’t know what to do,” He isn’t angry nor does He turn away.

But He did give us His Word to fight the feelings that try to pull us away from His plan. Emotions are real, but we need to master them.

You can say, “God, this feels too big for me, but Your Word says in Psalms 61:2 that You lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Thank You for providing that place of strength, stability, and security. I may not know what to do next, but Your Word says in James 1:5 that You will give me wisdom, so I ask You for that wisdom right now.”

That isn’t denial. That is faith. It isn’t pretending you aren’t facing problems, but it brings those real problems under submission to the greater reality of God’s Word.

So when you don’t see the answer yet, bring the problem to Him. If you don’t understand the timing yet, you can trust Him anyway. If you don’t feel brave yet, know that you aren’t taking the next obedient step alone.

Yet Has an Appointed Time

I’ve had lots of experiences with “yet” in my life. Maybe you have, too.

Maybe there is a dream God planted in your heart that still matters to you, even though years have passed. Perhaps there is a prayer you keep praying, but nothing looks different yet. Or maybe you’ve made some steps in the right direction, but don’t see how it’s created enough traction yet. Maybe there’s a child, spouse, friend, or family member you are still believing will fully surrender to God.

This is where Habakkuk 2:3 encourages me. The vision has an appointed time. God didn’t forget just because it wasn’t immediate. The word translated “delay” in Habakkuk 2:3 is used twice in English, but the original Hebrew words are not the same. The first time, where it says, “Even though it delays,” the meaning of delay (Hebrew word mahah) carries the idea of seeming slow or reluctant. The second time, where it says, “it will not delay,” the meaning of delay (Hebrew word ahar) points to not being late.

The word “delay” in English seems the same, but the original Hebrew words are not the same and have different meanings. You may have to wait, but the promise will not be too late. It will come in His time.

For the vision is yet for the appointed [future] time. It hurries toward the goal [of fulfillment]; it will not fail. Even though it delays, wait [patiently] for it, because it will certainly come; it will not delay.

Habakkuk 2:3

When waiting makes you question what God said, if you heard correctly, or if the dream was foolish, the Word has to remain central. Don’t give up. Let the Word help you course-correct. Our feelings can fade, especially if there is a long delay. But God’s Word never fades. Scripture fuels belief when our confidence wavers.

Yet Waits Without Letting Go

It’s one thing to wait for a package. It’s another to wait for a prodigal child to come home. Waiting in line is one thing. It’s another to wait for healing, provision, direction, or the fulfillment of something God placed in your heart.

Waiting patiently doesn’t mean waiting passively, however. It means we keep doing whatever God has directed us to do while God is working in ways we may not yet see. We keep praying, obeying, forgiving, sowing, showing up, speaking the Word, and refusing to let disappointment become our theology.

Disappointment can tell us God forgot, He doesn’t care, that we are too late, or the dream is dead. The Word tells us a different story.

But he (Abraham) did not doubt or waver in unbelief concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong and empowered by faith, giving glory to God, being fully convinced that God had the power to do what He had promised

Romans 4:20-21

Abraham had a promise and a long wait. He had a word from God and circumstances that looked impossible. He had a dream in his heart, yet grew strong in faith. Abraham didn’t just survive the delay. He grew stronger in faith while He waited.

That is the kind of “yet” that I want, and I bet you do, too.

Yet Isn’t Foolish

Your dream may need refining, additional wisdom, and a different timeline than you thought. It may even require more patience than you think you possess. But It isn’t foolish to trust God with what matters to you, with the things that haven’t happened yet.

God isn’t careless with your dreams, prayers, children, or obedience. His isn’t careless with the quiet places of your heart that you can barely frame into words, the ones you’ve only whispered to your spouse or a few close friends.

While the enemy may try to use delay to shame you into unbelief, sometimes the delay serves a bigger purpose.

Sometimes delay deepens our dependence on God, exposes our motives, or strengthens our obedience. It may prepare us to better steward what we’ve been praying for, deepen our gratitude for His hand at work, or cause us to memorize Scripture and pray in a deeper way. We may not understand why we need to keep saying “yet,” but I want to encourage you to keep hoping in Him. He sees where you are. You’ve not escaped His notice, and He will withhold no good thing from you as you walk with Him.

I don’t know what “yet” place you are standing in, but I know this: yet can cause growth you never imagined. It can fuel hope and strengthen faith. And the thing God has promised will not arrive late, so keep praying, obeying, standing in faith, speaking the Word, and trusting His timing. Saying “yet” reminds us God is still working on our behalf, to hold on to faith, and to keep pressing forward in whatever He’s called us to do.

Your “yet” is not proof God has forgotten you. It may be the place where He is growing you, anchoring you, and preparing an unfathomable testimony.

And when your “yet” becomes your “finally,” you will know He was faithful the whole time.

If this message encouraged you to keep trusting God when the timing feels long and the outcome feels impossible, you’ll find more hope in Holly’s book, Believing for a Miracle available in paperback and Kindle versions on Amazon.

Looking for more encouragement? Check out the post from July 2025: When the Dream Feels Too Far Gone – Holly D. Murray

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All Scripture quotations are taken from the Amplified® Bible, Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org

All Hebrew word definitions are from: The Complete Word Study Dictionary: Old Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2003)