The Sacredness of Waiting
Waiting has always been a condition of life. We wait in line at the store and at the bank. We wait for our children to be born, to take their first steps, to get out of diapers, to start the first day of school. We wait for seasons to change, for the rain to stop (or start), for flowers to bloom, and for leaves to fall.
Yet waiting is not a static condition. Unseen changes occur while waiting; there is growth that occurs, a pause that restores, or discernment that benefits from pondering. Waiting gives us time to listen with our hearts. We wait through sleepless nights when our babies are ill, or when our teenagers are late coming home. We wait at the bedside as we say goodbye to someone we love; we wait for grief to ebb.
And following her “yes”, Mary waited. With quiet faith and total trust she waited nine months for the fulfillment of God’s promise to humanity. The shepherds waited on the hillsides that deeply quiet night and were rewarded by being the first to hear the Angels announce that our Saviour was born. Mary waited many years pondering the words of Simeon and Anna. She watched her son, Jesus, grow to adulthood while she waited for His mission to be fulfilled. She waited in sorrow at the foot of the cross, and her faith was rewarded three days later.
“Why is waiting such a part of spirituality? Because waiting is where faith becomes necessary. Think about it. The god of instant gratification requires no faith. It’s in the waiting and the silence where faith develops. And so the three days between the crucifixion and the resurrection, they teach us what? That the presence of silence NEVER equals the absence of God. The eight days that exist between Thomas screaming his doubt into the sky and God appearing to him teaches us that God is in both the miraculous appearance and the eight days of silence. So the challenge of waiting is actually allowing faith to do its work. Trust that on the other side of this period of silence you will have a richer, deeper, more alive faith than you did before.” Sarina Duvall
This Advent let’s slow our lives to savour the silence and appreciate the wait. Let’s do less scrolling and make time for more strolling. Let’s start a conversation with our families and spend quality time together. Let’s resist getting caught up in the rush and noise and chaos that our secular society demands. Let’s turn our attention inward and feel the gentle movements of the Holy Spirit. In quiet and peace, let’s wait in faith to hear the soft whisper of God.
Wishing you a gentle Advent - Kathleen Griffin, Houston Associates