Light Advent Musings

Week 2

Waiting for Something to End

I've been told I walk with my toes "up", a physiological quirk which makes me hard on socks and shoes alike. Both pairs of my athletic shoes have holes in the toes. In normal times, I would have started my multi-store search for new shoes when Pair #2 showed early fraying of the toe stitches. But these are not normal times, so I think I'll wait for the pandemic to end...

My short bob of a haircut has now grown into some semblance of my 1970s college-era tresses. I've had to trim my bangs four times since my early pandemic haircut to avoid a shaggy dog look. I really, really want a professional haircut, but maybe I'll wait for the pandemic to end...

Last year I met a group of friends at a coffee shop for a few hours on Monday mornings. We brought our knitting, crocheting and other crafting projects with us, an excuse to drink coffee and talk, talk, talk. We now text pics of our projects to one another. It's something, but definitely not the same. I can't wait for the pandemic to end...

Okay, maybe I'm a bit excessive with my pandemic cautiousness, but wanting and waiting for the pandemic to end is a real desire in all of us. Waiting can have a somewhat backward-looking element to it. It can be as much about waiting for something to end, to finally be behind us, as it is about waiting for something to happen in front of us. The Israelites, as slaves in Egypt, waited for 400 plus years for their bondage to end. The same Israelites waited 70 years for their captivity in Babylon to end. Our date for the celebration of Christmas was chosen to occur near the time of the pagan celebration of the winter solstice. The festivities around the winter solstice were both backward- and forward-looking. In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter solstice marks the beginning of winter, with the deepest cold months of winter ahead, not much to celebrate. But the winter solstice also marks the longest night of the year, so really celebrates the end of increasing darkness.

We think of Advent as a time of looking toward Christmas, but the big Advent, the centuries of waiting for the promise of a Savior, was also as much about waiting for something to end as it was about waiting for something to happen. Waiting for salvation allowed mankind to come face to face with all the reasons of why a Savior was needed - waiting for bondage of all kind to come to an end, for sickness of all kind to be healed, for sin of all flavors to be atoned for, for the brokeness between God and man that occurred in the Garden to finally come to an end. Waiting for something to end increases our eagerness for what comes next.

The toes of my shoes look tattered, but the soles still have some miles in them. My curling iron and a hair clips allow my hair to look presentable. I continue to knit and crochet, drinking coffee alone in my house, sharing photos of finished projects, waiting for the time when the pandemic days are finally over. All these things, however, make me appreciate what I took for granted pre-pandemic – the interminable search for shoes that won't come through at the toe, leisurely sitting in a hair salon, knitting and coffee with friends in an enclosed public space. When I finally experience them again, they will be the sweeter for the time spent waiting for their absence to end.

Something to Ponder:

In your life now, what are you waiting for to end? The pandemic? A bad job situation? An unhealthy relationship? The lingering effects of some physical or emotional trauma? Take a look at the things that have been formed in you during this time of waiting for something to end. What have you learned about yourself? About God? What have you come to appreciate more? Dislike more?

Something to Pray:

Take a look at Revelation 21:3-5:

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Spend some time praying about the above passage, then focus on the underlined part. Ask God to give you a deeper understanding of this promise of an ending to mourning, crying, ultimately, even death. Pray through your reflections from your ponderings above, allowing God to minister to you in the places where you are waiting for something to end.