Advent

"Wait for the LORD; be strong and courageous. Wait for the LORD".

 Psalm 27:14

"Now without faith it is impossible to please God, for the one who draws near to Him must believe that He exists and rewards those who seek Him."

 Hebrews 11:6

Waiting and Faith Go Hand-In-Hand

What's the longest you've had to wait for something?

I imagine almost everyone has a memory of Christmas Eve as a child; squeezing your eyes shut, trying with all your might to go to sleep on Christmas Eve. For those of you with orthodox parents, you knew that even opening one present before Christmas morning was akin to high heresy.

And so you counted sheep and waited.

Waiting is still difficult. We expect everything to be at our fingertips the moment we have the desire for it. It's a world we're growing into and it's addicting. We live in a world of easy downloads, instantaneous email, on demand and food prepared in a few minutes. Yet God finds ways of making us wait. Waiting and faith go hand-in-hand.

• We wait for the baby we've dreamed we'd hold in our arms.
• Some are waiting for their prodigal son to come to the end of himself and return home.
• Many of us are waiting for the phone to ring so we can return to a job with a normal salary and benefits.
• Others are waiting for an eye-opening spiritual breakthrough.

Waiting is the embodiment of faith.

In Hebrews 11:13 we are reminded that faith involves trust in God's promise even if the promises of God are fulfilled long after we're gone. The writer says, "These all died in faith without having received the promises, but they saw them from a distance ..." (Emphasis added.)

Accompany us, God,

through the waiting.

Accompany those displaced

waiting to return to the land.

Accompany those in refugee camps

waiting to go home.

Accompany those in conflict zones

waiting for normality.

Accompany those in violent homes

waiting for silence.

Accompany those imprisoned

waiting for justice.

Accompany us God

through the waiting

until your kingdom comes.

Amen