Something Worth Waiting For
As Father Mike Schmitz, who is a Catholic priest and prolific Christian author has said, there are three words that aptly describe how we human beings respond to things we are excited about and looking forward to, and to things we want to see happen.
The three words are “I can’t wait.”
Three words we hear a lot this time of year. I can’t wait to see my family. I can’t wait for Christmas break. It’s not unusual to hear our college students say, “I can’t wait for finals to be done.” Our children will all say, “I can’t wait to see what is under that tree. “
For many of us, maybe most of us, waiting is not easy. Sometimes, we literally can’t wait.
There was a study back in the 70’s at Stanford that involved little children, marshmallows, and waiting. You can look it up on YouTube. Children were placed in a room with a marshmallow in front of them. A person who was working with them said, “here is a marshmallow. I am going to be leaving the room for five minutes. You can eat this marshmallow while I am gone, but if you wait until I get back, just give minutes, I will give you two marshmallows.
Some of the children did better than others. Some were more patient than others. Some said, “No problem, I can wait. I’m gonna get two marshmallows.” For others, it was a little more of a challenge. Some of them couldn’t even look at the marshmallow. Some covered it with the saucer it was on, some turned around. The study was reproduced more recently and I’m not sure what they learned from the study other than it is harder for some people to wait and to exercise patience than others.
But I think most of us would agree as the Book of James tells us in our text today, it is important to be patient, a lack of patience can result in frustration and disappointment.
I remember once when I was in about the sixth grade, there was something I wanted for Christmas more than anything else. I was already a budding song writer and singer so I wanted to be recorded. The one thing I wanted more than anything else for Christmas that year was a little portable cassette recorder.
I saw a present under the tree that looked like it might be a tape recorder. I still remember it was wrapped in beautiful red wrapping paper. I wanted to know what it was, but then I also didn’t want to ruin the surprise so I didn’t peak. What I did do by way of compromise was to peak at another present. I untaped it, looked inside, and then taped it back. (Kids don’t try this at home).
Now, what do you think was in the present I peeked into? If you said cassette tapes, you would be absolutely right. Ruined my big surprise that Christmas.
So I think we can all agree patience is a good thing, even, and maybe especially this time of the year.
In the theme of the Advent season, our text today tells us “to be patient until the Lord’s coming.
It is super important that we wait for the Lord. One of my favorite Psalm’s is Psalm 130.
My soul waits for the Lord and in his word I do hope
My soul waits for the Lord
More than those who watch for the morning.
…For with the lord is great mercy, and with Him is plenteous redemption
And He shall redeem Israel from all iniquity.
Being Patient, and waiting for the Lord is a good thing, even though it is not always easy. But there are some things that can encourage us to be patient; including some great stories in the Bible.
There is the story of Daniel in the Old Testament. Daniel was one of the exiles during the days of the Babylonian captivity. Hard times for God’s people.
He has a vision described in chapter 10 of the Book of Daniel, a vision of devastation and war. It broke his heart. It says, he grieved. He mourned and he fasted for 3 weeks. He ate no rich food. He did not anoint himself.
Nothing happened. (Hard to be patient when nothing is happening, right?) but at the end of three weeks he was visited by an angel.
Here is Daniel 10:12
Do not fear Daniel, from the first day you made up your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words have been heard and I have come because of your words.
See what happened? Daniel’s prayer was answered before he even prayed. It was answered the instant he decided to turn to the Lord and pray, but he didn’t know it was answered for three weeks.
Do you think that ever happens to us? Sometimes we just have to be patient and wait for the Lord.
God is with us and doing things whether we feel like it or not. It is important to be patient with the Lord and to be patient with the “process.”
In the Gospel reading assigned for today from the lectionary John the Baptist is in prison. He sends his disciples to ask Jesus: “Have I made a mistake in understanding you are the One who is to come, or should we look for another?” When you are in prison it is probably very natural to get very introspective like that. Jesus sends the disciples back to tell John.
“The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” (Matthew 11:5)
In other words, Jesus is telling John to trust the process. Jesus is the Messiah, John is the one who prepares the way for him; but there is a process that is not easy to follow. Even Jesus struggled a little bit with that process in the garden when he was praying.
As I preached a little while back, God has a plan, God has a process. We have a problem. Our problem is that it is hard for us to be patient with God’s process and to trust God’s plan. Because while God is God and we are not, we have what my former pastor Dr. Millard Reed used to refer to as “an illusion of sovereignty.”
We like to think we are God and it is hard for us to trust God’s process, especially if we are in jail, or things aren’t turning out “our way,” but God really has a process, and it is a really good process. (Just read the last page of this book—the Bible).
It is not always or even often easy to have patience with God and with God’s process, but God does have a good plan for us all.
Remember King David? David was anointed to be king when he was very young. However, it is one thing to be anointed as king and another to rule as king and David had to be patient with the process.
If we are really going to experience what God has for us, we have to be patient with the Lord, and with God’s plan and process. We also have to be patient with ourselves and one another.
Even if we forget God is God and we are not, God remembers. In the Living Translation of the Bible, Psalm 103:14 says:
God knows how weak we are. God remembers that we are dust.
We are dust that has had God’s breath breathed into us, but we are dust, and God remembers that and knows all about us. God remembers that we are frail. God knows it is hard for us to trust the process and it is good for us to remember that too. It is good for each of us to welcome ourselves to the human race.
Sometimes it’s hard for us to be patient. Put me in that room with one marshmallow. Tell me if I wait five minutes before I eat it and I will get another one, and I might wiggle in my chair a little bit. Wrap up a present, put it under the tree for me, and I might peak to see what it is. Sorry mom, sorry Stephanie (just kidding).
It is not always easy for us to be patient with God, with God’s plan and process, with ourselves, with one another. Yet, most things worth doing are not easy.
It is a good thing we are not saved by our patience. We are saved by the One who gives us patience and every good gift. We are saved by the One who is coming, which is definitely worth waiting for. Amen.