3 WAITING: Waiting is to do nothing expecting something to happen: to stay in one place or do nothing for a period of time until something happens or in the expectation or hope that something will happen (Microsoft® Encarta® 2008. © 1993-2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved). The use of the word waiting brings to mind the intent of God, who desires so much that we His children listen to Him. More than ever we are stopped from listening to God, from listening to our hearts as God speaks due to the many distractions we get from life. We live in an age where noise dominates, where silent reflection and recollection is seen as alien. And yet we are pleased with such existence and live as if there is nothing amiss. In ages past, we saw how God interacted with His people, how He delivered His messages to his people, who were ever ready to listen to Him. We ask ourselves today “why is God no more talking to us?” Now we should ask ourselves, “who changed?” Is it God or did we change? Faith tells us that God is unchangeable, and philosophy tells us that the most constant thing in human life or in this world is change. We cannot say that God does not speak to us, for He is the same yesterday, today and forever. Indeed it is man that has changed. He in his quest for all the good things of life has left that which gives birth to this goodness, in his search for a better life; he has fallen into the hands of deception who tells him that this life can be gotten without the help of God. We are called to look at ourselves as we wait for God to reveal himself in the person of Christ. As the definition above points out, God wants us to do nothing because He is going to do all things for us. In doing all things for us He needs our cooperation, and that is why He tells us to wait. In waiting, we are not to sit idly and wait, we are to wait In action. Waiting in action leads us back to our first point- preparation At this point let me state that the three aspects discussed so far, that of preparation, hope and waiting, are all intertwined. Waiting brings out very salient aspects of our spiritual life, and they include:
· WAITING CREATES TIME DURING WHICH WE CAN TRUST GOD: David knew from experience what it meant to wait for the Lord. He had been anointed king at age sixteen, but didn’t become king until he was thirty. During the interim, he was chased through the wilderness by jealous King Saul. David had to wait on God for the fulfillment of his promise to reign. Later, after becoming king, he was chased by his rebellious son, Absalom.
·Waiting for God is not easy. Often it seems that he isn’t answering our prayers or doesn’t understand the urgency of our situation. That kind of thinking implies that God is not in control or is not fair. But God is worth waiting for. (Illumina Gold) Waiting is God’s means of teaching, renewing and refreshing His children. In advent we are being taught to wait in patience, for the coming of Christ. Patience is a virtue that is not truly applied every day. We hear of it, it is a reality in our world today, but it is not a lived experience for all. Advent renews the spirit of God in us, who urges us into preparation for the coming of Christ, advising us to make ample use of the opportunity we have to right our wrongs with God. Advent refreshes and gives us a new lease of life. It makes us receive heartily the second person of the trinity. Advent as such gives us that attitude of trust in God which we so need today. This is because man is trying daily to take the place of God in his life, thus making us refuse o give To God that trust that is due to be given Him. We are being stung to consciousness; advent is that scorpion that stings us to that consciousness.
· WAITING ON GOD PREPARES US TO HAVE OUR REAL NEEDS MET: In waiting we can be rest assured that what we have waited for would eventually come to us. There is a general maxim that says that justice can only be delayed but not denied. This is very much applicable to our discourse, for in waiting the only thing we suffer is that there is an inherent delay but we would not be denied what truly belongs to us. Let me emphasize here that in advent, God prepares as much as we prepare, when I say God, I mean the three persons in One God. Thus while we prepare to receive what we are waiting for, God prepares Himself and also prepares us to receive what he has told us to wait for. God prepares us by ensuring that we get the necessary graces we need to truly receive Him. Baptism opens us to such graces. That is why I am of the opinion that this thought of waiting is not similar to that of being idle in expectation. Instead, it means being active in expectation. We are to be assured of the fact that God cannot stand a dirty environment, thus we are to clean up ourselves, not like the hypocrites and not in a pharisaic way, “You Pharisees are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are still filthy” (Lk 11:39) We are meant to clean up ourselves from the inside. And yet we should not neglect the outside, for the same God who made the outside made the inside (Lk 11:40). When we advocate the cleaning of the inside we mean that your spiritual life must be in good health. God made both the spiritual and the physical life, and the both of them in unison makes a person completely spiritual, for the physical and the spiritual totally complement each other. Thus as much as we may clean up our surroundings and get new materials goods for ourselves to show off on Christmas day, we should pay more attention to our soul and expect that our needs would be met with the birth of Christ. Let this stand point not be misconstrued, we should not give God conditions with respect to our relationship with Him. That is to say, let us not say because we wants out needs met then we repent and get baptized. God would meet our inmost needs but we need to trust in Him knowing fully well that he knows what is best for all of us.
· WAITING ENCOURAGES US TO ALWAYS BE PREPARED FOR CHRIST’S RETURN: Knowing that Christ’s return will be sudden and unexpected should motivate us always to be prepared. We are not to live irresponsibly-sitting and waiting, doing nothing; seeking self-serving pleasure; using his tarrying as an excuse not to do God’s work of building his kingdom; developing a false security based on precise calculations of events; or letting our curiosity about the end times divert us from doing God’s work. (illumina Gold) We have maintained that advent developed out of the thought of Christ’s second coming, His return. We are to wait In activity, and not in idleness, Jesus asks us to spend the time of waiting taking care of his people and doing his work here on earth, both within the church and outside it. This is the best way to prepare for Christ’s return (illumina Gold); this is the best way to wait. How can we wait and still work? The next point answers this.
· WAITING GIVES US OPPORTUNITY TO WORK OUT OUR FAITH: Some people in the Thessalonian church were falsely teaching that because Christ would return any day, people should set aside their responsibilities, quit work, do no future planning, and just wait for the Lord. But their lack of activity only led them into sin. They became a burden to the church, which was supporting them; they wasted time that could have been used for helping others; and they became busybodies. These church members may have thought that they were being more spiritual by not working, but Paul tells them to be responsible and get back to work. Being ready for Christ means obeying him in every area of life. Because we know that Christ is coming, we must live in such a way that our faith and our daily practice will please him when he arrives. (illumina Gold) The advice of St Paul to the church in Thessalonica, gives credence to the thought of waiting in action, and not in idleness.
In summary, this threefold message of advent answers three questions namely:
WHO ARE WE WAITING FOR- CHRIST
HOW ARE WE WAITING FOR CHRIST- IN PREPARATION
HOW ARE WE PREPARING- IN HOPE
Our hope, our desire to wait and our preparation all goes to the person of Christ, who is the reason for the season. The message of John the Baptist was one of a total turning back to God in expectation of the coming of His Son. This is the message of Advent.
IWUH DOZIE.