Vs. 42 “So you also must be ready, because the Son of
Man will come at an hour
when you do not
expect Him.”

Whether you are pulling into a toll plaza or going to check out at the grocery line, you are looking for the shortest line.  Two things happen when you spot it.  One, someone else beats you to it, even if it means cutting you off. Two, the person in front of you will have an item that needs a price check or their EZ Pass doesn’t work or they don’t have EZ Pass.

We are taught to wait when we are taught to cross the street.  We are told to cross at the corner, look both ways, and to wait till the light turns green.  We stand and wait for the green light.  It doesn’t matter if there isn’t a car in sight for miles.  We wait.  That is until one day, we decide that we don’t have to wait for the green, if no cars are coming.  That’s begins our lack of tolerance to wait.

Waiting no longer is good for you.  Waiting has become an annoyance an inconvenience.

As you know Diane and I and the family recently flew down to Acapulco.  We left the house at 4:30 a.m. for our 7:30 a.m. flight.  We arrived early because we anticipated that the increased security in the airport would mean increased waiting time.  But the waiting seemed justified.  I didn’t mind waiting if it meant that I would arrive safely in Acapulco.  After all I have been waiting more than six months for this trip to Acapulco to celebrate my up and coming 50th birthday with Adam, Ashley, Greg and Diane.

When we landed in Acapulco safely all the waiting we had to do made it worth the wait. We got off the plane proceeded to the luggage area and waited for our luggage.  This time our wait was in vain.  It seems our luggage decided to vacation in Mexico City without us.

This was not the only waiting we did at the airport.  After waiting in vain for our luggage, we waited in vain for a full size rental car.  On Sunday, Diane and I made our way back to the airport to pick up Greg.  We waited outside of the customs area for Greg.  Passengers were passing us by, luggage in tow.  Some were greeted by the all too willing taxi cab drivers that saw each passenger as potential fares. Others walked into the arms of waiting loved ones.  As for Diane and I, we stood and looked into an empty room and saw no signs of Greg. Without Greg we left the airport and returned to our resort, where we would wait for two hours before returning to the airport to again wait and see if Greg would be on that flight.

A second time we stood waiting outside the customs area.  A second time we watched passengers greeted by loved ones and taxi drivers.  This time our waiting was not in vain. Greg came through the doors and into our waiting arms.

If I learned anything about waiting it is that the end gives meaning to our waiting.  This is equally true of Advent.  Advent can be awful or awe-filled.

God has provided us with the greatest analogy for Advent.  It is called pregnancy.  While the thrill of being pregnant for most women is replaced with, "I can’t wait for this baby to be born" around the 8th month.  We know for a fact that the time of waiting is not wasted time. It is a time of gestation.  Time needed for the embryo to grow, for organs to be developed, for the physical body to mature.  It is not wasted time but rather it is a time for the development of new life.

While at times the pregnancy and even the birth may seem and may be awful.  When the doctor places the newborn child into his or her mothers arm the awful pains of birth are transformed into an awe filled moment.  That awe filled moment has made it worth the wait.

In some ways this Advent season will be no different than last year.  Time will be at a premium.  I want to challenge you to make this Advent, less time stressed than last year.  Make a conscious decision that Advent is not wasted time before Christmas.  Look at Advent as time for the growth of new life.  Wait and watch for God to transform the awful moments into awe filled moments.

Wait and watch.

“So you also must be ready,
because the Son of Man
will come at an hour when
you do not expect Him.”