Monday: Waiting
“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, . . .”
Advent is a time of waiting for someone to come. In fact all of life is full of waiting, yet we never become very good at it. The people of Israel waited hundreds of years for the Messiah. We can hardly wait for 60 seconds for a traffic light to change.
Nearly every event of life requires waiting. We all wait for the phone to ring, the mail to come, the kettle to boil, the children to come home. We wait in line.
We wait for more important things: a disease to be cured or a bone to heal, for a promotion or a new job, for attitudes to change, for the mortgage to be paid off, for a baby to be born, for grief to go away, for answers to questions.
Since we all have to wait, the test is what we do while we wait. Some of us sigh or worry or fidget. Others honk their car horns or curse. Waiting can become valuable when we use the time creatively. We can pray or meditate, rest and regroup, read and learn.
The best news is that in good time, God’s time, all waiting ends. The Word of love is spoken. The Promised One is born “when the fullness of time had come.” We hope in an active, expectant way, knowing our waiting will end.
Advent, then, is a time of creative waiting, looking toward the future with hope. We do not just sit passively waiting. We hope in an active, expectant way.
For Reflection: Why is it so hard to wait?
A Prayer Seed:
Come, Thou long-expected Jesus,
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us;
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Charles Wesley, 1744
