Esperar, to wait
Today I waited for the eye doctor for about an hour. In that time I read almost the entire Time magazine. I sent a few text messages. I stared at the lady who was also waiting. She had been waiting longer than I had, and I could tell she was getting frustrated. I also eavesdropped on the Spanish conversation taking place between the receptionist and another patient. I don't think they had a clue that I understood.
Waiting is not always fun. It can be uncomfortable and uncertain.
An eye exam was something that needed to be done so that I could buy new contacts, but waiting for something that I'm really looking forward to is exciting!
I had been anticipating the trip to Guatemala for almost 3 months. Now I'm looking forward to Christmas break and time with my family in Virginia. After that, there will be something else I'm sure.
Advent is a time of waiting and preparation as we celebrate Jesus' birth. The devotional that I'm reading right now discusses how we're in between two advents, that of His birth and His return. [We are tethered, not just floating, between the two, so we are somewhat grounded, and there's comfort in that.] In Spanish we say ya pero todavia no. I can't remember how we say this in English, but it's the idea that we've been justified, but we're not done yet. We're still in this season of waiting as the Lord sanctifies us. Jesus has come, but the world is still a wreck. We are still a mess. There's beauty in the mess and glimpses of the new heaven and new earth, but we're not there yet. Oh how I long for that day when injustice, hurt, pain, tears, dissatisfaction, loneliness, rejection, abuse, and fear don't exist. So what do we do until then?
I feel like my life is an advent right now. Active waiting. Maybe take a new career path? Maybe stay at the same job for now? Maybe enter the mission field? Maybe go back to school? Maybe say goodbye to someone I really care for? Maybe volunteer with Young Life? Maybe mentor former students? There's a lot of question marks. A lot of maybes. A lot of searching. A lot of uncertainty. A lot of dissonance.
And I want resolution. I want answers. I want to be moving instead of feeling a bit stuck. I want to follow where God says to go, but I struggle to listen and hear. Help me, Lord. Thank You for Your waiting and patience with me.
Waiting is not always fun. It can be uncomfortable and uncertain.
An eye exam was something that needed to be done so that I could buy new contacts, but waiting for something that I'm really looking forward to is exciting!
I had been anticipating the trip to Guatemala for almost 3 months. Now I'm looking forward to Christmas break and time with my family in Virginia. After that, there will be something else I'm sure.
Advent is a time of waiting and preparation as we celebrate Jesus' birth. The devotional that I'm reading right now discusses how we're in between two advents, that of His birth and His return. [We are tethered, not just floating, between the two, so we are somewhat grounded, and there's comfort in that.] In Spanish we say ya pero todavia no. I can't remember how we say this in English, but it's the idea that we've been justified, but we're not done yet. We're still in this season of waiting as the Lord sanctifies us. Jesus has come, but the world is still a wreck. We are still a mess. There's beauty in the mess and glimpses of the new heaven and new earth, but we're not there yet. Oh how I long for that day when injustice, hurt, pain, tears, dissatisfaction, loneliness, rejection, abuse, and fear don't exist. So what do we do until then?
I feel like my life is an advent right now. Active waiting. Maybe take a new career path? Maybe stay at the same job for now? Maybe enter the mission field? Maybe go back to school? Maybe say goodbye to someone I really care for? Maybe volunteer with Young Life? Maybe mentor former students? There's a lot of question marks. A lot of maybes. A lot of searching. A lot of uncertainty. A lot of dissonance.
And I want resolution. I want answers. I want to be moving instead of feeling a bit stuck. I want to follow where God says to go, but I struggle to listen and hear. Help me, Lord. Thank You for Your waiting and patience with me.
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