The Great Wait

When life slows down but pressure doesn’t, the great wait can feel unbearable—seasons when promises seem distant and demands keep rising.

 In this episode, Jermine Alberty names that tension with compassion and clarity, reframing waiting as working time and guiding listeners from passive endurance to purposeful growth.

 Through honest stories, he explores the difference between endurance and exhaustion, shows how pressure often comes before platform and inner work before influence, and offers five anchors for heavy seasons: clarify your assignment, protect your energy with boundaries, build support through mentors and peers, stay grounded in prayer and reflection, and practice honest self-care. 

With practical tools for naming limits and choosing the right yes, he closes with reflective questions to reset your pace and posture. If you’re tired but faithful, this conversation offers relief and direction—share it, subscribe, and help others find The Salt Talk with Jermine Alberty

Chapters

• 0:00 Naming The Great Wait
• 1:05 When Delay Meets Rising Demands
• 3:56 Waiting Is Working Time
• 6:41 From Exhaustion To Honest Limits
• 9:15 Five Anchors For Heavy Seasons

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Well everybody, welcome to Salt Talk with Jermaine Alberty, where we serve, affirm, love, and believe in transformation. I'm your host, Jermaine Alberty, and as always, I'm grateful that you've chosen to spend these moments with me. Today I want to talk about something that many of us are living through right now, even if we don't always have the language for it. Today we're going to talk about the great weight. That's right. The great weight, W-A-I-T. Some of you are waiting. You're faithful, you're showing up, you're praying, you're serving, you're building, but you're tired. You're hopeful and frustrated, encouraged and discouraged, strong and worn down, all at the same time. And if that's you, this episode is for you. This is Jermaine Alberty, and you listen to The Salt Talk. One of the hardest seasons in life is when it feels as if what you've been asking for has been delayed, but the load continues to increase. When the breakthrough hasn't come yet, but the responsibility keeps growing. When the promise feels far away, but the pressure feels close. You're waiting on clarity, waiting on provision, waiting on healing, waiting on confirmation, waiting on doors to open. But while you're waiting, you're still parenting, still leading, still mentoring, still counseling, still pastoring, still serving, still building, and yet still carrying weight. And sometimes you want to ask this question, God, if I'm not ready yet, why am I caring so much? If I'm still in preparation, why does it feel like production? If I'm still waiting, why am I so tired? Here's the truth. The weight tests your patience, the weight tests your character, and both are shaping you. Let's talk about that wait for a moment. That W A I T. Because waiting is hard. I know we were manicizing it in the church. We say things like, just wait on the Lord. God's timing is perfect. Be patient. You may not come when you want them. All those things can be true. But waiting is still uncomfortable. Waiting feels uncertain. Waiting feels uncertain. Waiting feels unfair sometimes. And waiting feels like I've done what you asked me to do. I've been faithful, I've been consistent, I've been obedient. So why am I still here? Why am I still in this space? Why hasn't it shifted yet? And some of you are waiting on a new job, a new opportunity, a new season, a new healed relationship, a financial breakthrough, a ministry door, a business connection, emotional peace. And it feels like everybody else is moving except you. But let me say this clearly: waiting is not wasted time. Waiting is working time. Waiting is when God is strengthening what you can't see yet. There's a difference between passive waiting and purposeful waiting. Passive waiting says, I'll just sit here and complain. Purposeful waiting says, I'm going to grow while I'm here. I'm going to learn while I'm here. I'm going to mature while I'm here. I'm going to prepare while I'm here. Some of the greatest development is happening in delay. Let me say this. Just because you're anointed doesn't mean you're not exhausted. Just because you're gifted doesn't mean you're not human. Just because you're strong doesn't mean you don't need rest. And some of us have been surviving on adrenaline and assignment. We've been running on purpose and pressure. And we haven't paused to ask, how am I really doing? The rate reveals your capacity, but it also reveals your limits. Ignoring your limits is not faith, it's burnout and disguise. Here's what I've learned. God rarely gives you the platform without first giving you the pressure. God really gives you the visibility without first giving you the vulnerability. God rarely gives you the influence without first giving you the internal work. Waiting builds discipline. Waiting builds discernment. Waiting builds dependence on God. On the other hand, weight builds endurance. Weight builds integrity. So let me give you five anchors for this season. Five things to hold on to while you're waiting and you're carrying. Anchor one, clarify your assignment. Ask yourself, what is God asking me to do right now? Not next year, not five years from now. Right now. Stay focused on this season. Anchor two, protect your energy. Everything does not deserve access to you. Every meeting doesn't need a yes. Every request doesn't need compliance. Rest is not laziness. Rest is stewardship. Anchor three, build safe support. You need people who can hold you up, mentors, peers, counselors, spiritual friends, strong leaders still need safe spaces. Anchor four, stay spiritually grounded. Prayer, reflection, scripture, generaling. Not as performance, as nourishment. Because we do this often. We try to pour from an empty spirit. My friends, you can't pour from an empty spirit. Anchor five, practice honest self-care, not Instagram self-care, real self-care, sleep, movement, boundaries, healthy conversations, time off. Your body is part of your calling. Protect it. Five anchors. Clarify your assignment. Protect your energy. Build safe support. Stay spiritually grounded and practice honest self-care. Let me be honest with you. There have been seasons in my life where I was faithful but frustrated, committed but confused, hopeful but heavy. I was doing the work, showing up, serving, building, but wondering, Lord, when is this going to shift? When is this going to open? When is this going to change? And looking back now, I'm grateful God didn't rush me. Because I wasn't just being positioned, I was being prepared. I was learning patience, learning boundaries, learning discernment, learning how to say no, learning how to rest, learning how to trust God when I didn't understand God. Some things I asked for too early would have crushed me. Some doors I wanted fast would have overwhelmed me. God loved me enough, just low me down. So let me close with this. If you're in a season of waiting, don't quit. If you're in a season of caring, don't collapse. If you're tired, rest. If you're discouraged, resenter. If you're overwhelmed, reach out. Waiting is not wasted. Wait is not permanent. This season is producing something in you. Ask yourself this week, what is this season growing in me? What is God shaping in me? What is being strengthened in me? You're closer than you think, you're stronger than you feel, and you're more prepared than you realize. Well, if this episode blessed you, share it. Send it to somebody who is tired but faithful. Subscribe, leave a review, and stay connected with the Salt community. Remember, serve, affirm, love, transform. This is Jermaine Alberty, and you've been listening to The Salt Talk.