THE WAITING IS ALMOST OVER

 

Sunday, December 24, 2023

 

THE WAITING IS ALMOST OVER

 

Ps 130:3-5

3 If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?

4 But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.

5 I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.

 

Luke 2:6-7

6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

 

          It occurred to me on this eve of Christmas that much of the Scriptures is about waiting. The Jewish slaves in Egypt waited fearfully behind bloody doors until the danger passed over. Then they waited forty years while they trudged through the barrenness of the wilderness. And few have written of the four hundred years of silence from Malachi to Matthew. Waiting! Anxious, hopeful, waiting.

 

          This season finds us focusing on the waiting of Mary. Bulging belly, aching back, and swollen feet were reminders that the waiting would soon be over. She spent her days in wonder and in preparation. The journey to Bethlehem tested her physically and challenged her mentally. “Breath of heaven, hold me together, be forever near to me. Breath of heaven.” Mary must have prayed and sang within herself as she swayed back and forth upon her ride. It was effort, but the waiting would soon be over.

 

          Now we wait for Christ’s return in power and great glory. We have endured centuries of sermons telling us that Christ would come soon. We have studied both Scriptures and newsprint hoping to find clues to His coming. Deep within our soul we can feel that the waiting will soon be over.

 

Heb 11:13

13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

 

Blessed art Thou, O Lord, because you have never defaulted on your promises. AMEN