A World of Waiting

In theological reflection, we look at slices of life from the perspective of the doctrinal themes of Creation, Sin, Judgment and Redemption.

It occurred to me this morning, as I struggled with the myriad worlds of waiting we are all in, that it would be helpful to do a little theological reflection on waiting.

And so I ask...What is life like in the world of waiting?

Creation: What does it look like?

Sin: What hurts?

Judgment: What catches you up short?

Redemption: What is cause for celebration?

In our Reading Between the Lines class this morning, we will look at these four quadrants and discuss them. I encourage all of us to do this work as we head into Advent, the Season of Waiting, as the world waits for the Light in the Darkness, darkness that has come at us from so many directions in these last nine months.

Some ideas...

Waiting looks like the unknown, isolation, and dis - ease. But waiting implies there is something to wait for!

Waiting hurts because of the unknown, isolation and dis-ease, not to mention no control and fear of the future.

Waiting catches you up short when you think an end is in sight, and yet the reins pull you back like a leash on a dog.

Waiting brings cause for celebration when the sun rises on a new day and the end is in sight.

What does Waiting look like for you?

How can you frame it and understand it so it is not so daunting?

Where will you see the sun rising on a new day and the light at the end of the tunnel?

Psalm 133 this morning closes with:

For there the Lord as ordained the blessing: life for evermore.

And in Paul's letter to the Ephesians, we hear the prayer that

...the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you...

I hear cause for celebration in both of those passages.

I hope you do too.