To wait upon the Lord

What, then, does it mean to wait upon the Lord? In the scriptures, the word wait means to hope, to anticipate, and to trust. To hope and trust in the Lord requires faith, patience, humility, meekness, long-suffering, keeping the commandments, and enduring to the end.To wait upon the Lord means planting the seed of faith and nourishing it “with great diligence, and … patience.”¹⁷Waiting upon the Lord means to “stand fast”²² and “press forward” in faith, “having a perfect brightness of hope.”²³It means “relying alone upon the merits of Christ”²⁴ and “with [His] grace assisting [us, saying]: Thy will be done, O Lord, and not ours.”²⁵
As we wait upon the Lord, we are “immovable in keeping the commandments,”²⁶ knowing that we will “one day rest from all [our] afflictions.”²⁷
Waiting upon the Lord gives us a priceless opportunity to discover that there are many who wait upon us. Our children wait upon us to show patience, love, and understanding toward them. Our parents wait upon us to show gratitude and compassion. Our brothers and sisters wait upon us to be tolerant, merciful, and forgiving. Our spouses wait upon us to love them as the Savior has loved each one of us.
His angels here and beyond the veil are “round about [us], to bear [us] up.”⁴⁵ I bear my special witness that our Savior’s promise is true, for He says, “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”⁴⁶

General Conference oct. 2011
ROBERT D. HALES
Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles