While you wait…

The wait is over… or at least in part…

Last night, a crowd of 42,382 stood, cheering… the Phanatic dancing… Fans tuned in across the region. We could all taste the sweet savor of a victory long in the coming. But not until the last out was called could the victory celebration begin. At 9:36pm, the Phillies won the National League East Championship for the first time in thirteen years. They officially “own the East” with their win against the Cubs, 6-2 at Citizens Bank Park- Aaron Nola’s 13th win of the season. Last night, the sports commentators called the NL East title a ‘crown.’ They said the wait is over… but the truth is, our ‘crowned’ champs still have much to accomplish. While we have waited 13 years to clinch the East, we have waited 16 years to celebrate a World Series win. We want a parade down Broad Street, so we are still waiting…
Waiting…

Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams know a little bit about waiting. On June 5th they launched into space for an 8-day expedition to the International Space Station (ISS). Everything went smoothly. They arrived safely aboard the ISS that day. But then their return capsule sprung a coolant leak making their return trip a bit questionable. When Boeing’s Starliner returned to earth unoccupied, it left the astronauts with a little extra time in space. NASA tells us that they are not “stranded”, just “temporarily delayed” from 8 days to 8 months. Sergei Krikalev holds the record for days ‘delayed’ in space. He launched on May 18, 1991, expecting to do experiments on the Soviet Union’s Mir Space Station for a few months. But on December 26, 1991, the Soviet Union fell, leaving the Russian cosmonaut stranded for 803 days in space. What do you do while you wait for the next taxi to earth?
Waiting…  

Right now, many of us are waiting for rain. We just aerated our grass, but all that did was churn up a yard of brown. We always hope that the fall rainy season will inspire growth that will carry my lawn through the winter into a lush green spring. But without water… and with a lazy gardener who is unwilling to use a hose and sprinkler… my grass is dead, dead, dead. I am told there is always hope of a resurrection, so I watch the weather reports hoping… waiting…
Waiting…

Yesterday, I watched #6 waiting on the bench for a chance to get in the game. #6 is new to the sport but is already catching on. I saw her emerging skills in the warm-up. The JV team should be the place to learn, to get experience, to find new talents. Isn’t High School supposed to be a time of exploration? But, when the game begins, #6 finds herself on the bench, waiting. It’s not that the players on the court are amazing. They, too, are learning. They, too, misplay the ball. They, too, fault on their serves. They, too, allow a lead to turn into a loss. But still #6 sits on the bench. The coach puts her in for 2 plays, but before she gets near the ball, #6 is out again. Waiting… What do you do while you wait? Those are the moments that shape character. I watched #6 learn those hard-earned lessons of sportsmanship- to smile, cheer, high-five, and share in the team huddle, even while waiting for a chance that may not come this season.
Waiting…  

We live in a hurry-up time. We use microwaves and ‘enjoy?’ eating fast food. We expect things to happen NOW. Most of us do not like waiting. In those moments when the NOW is delayed, we pace, we worry, we angst, we rail against the frustration. Lenape Valley just went through a 2-year wait as we searched for a Director of Youth Ministry. I did not always show the same dignity as #6 during those long months of waiting. The coming of Brandon Best was worth the wait. But still the question- What do we do while we wait?

The couple waiting for their first child to arrive starts ‘nesting.’ They work late into the night, depriving themselves of the last good night’s sleep they will have for years, just to complete a nursery that the baby won’t even notice. Their little one would be just as happy in a bureau draw as in a beautifully decorated room. The waiting inspires a surge of organization that will fall apart as soon as the little one arrives. Waiting…

As children, we wait for Santa to arrive… as teens, we wait for the independence of a driver’s license… as adults, we wait for the outcome of an election that leaves us all on pins and needles. What will the day after the election bring? We wait… because we must, not because we see any value in the wait. But the Bible teaches us that God is working in our waiting. Think of the Israelites who grew as a community and deepened in faith during their 40-year wait in the wilderness. Think of the disciples who learned to trust as they waited in the Upper Room for the Spirit to come on Pentecost. Think of the Roman church, suffering in their waiting. St. Paul writes, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” (Romans 12:12) What a good word for those of us who struggle in the waiting. Waiting time does not have to be wasted time. These in-between moments, no matter how long, can be the moments when God is teaching us, deepening us, drawing us near. The Psalmist writes, “O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you.” (Psalm 39:7)

With you… learning the value of waiting…
Anita