(My view from the floor)
The following are some thoughts I had last night during our Friday night gathering at the church.
What is there about waiting that is so awkward? Well, not just waiting but silence too. Silence feels awkward often. Waiting while silent is doubly awkward. The awkward trifecta occurs when I don't know what I am silently waiting for.
Maybe that's what we should call our Friday night group at Redeemer... The Trifecta of Awkwardness.
As a community we gather at 9pm on Friday evenings to wait on God, often silently. We do not know what, if anything, will happen. In fact we are doing it right now as I type this.
Too often Christian meetings have become venues that strive to entertain and comfort the masses. In fact, many meetings seem to do everything possible to make people feel secure that absolutely nothing out of the ordinary will happen. You see the unexpected happening makes us feel out of control. Here in the West we like to feel like everything is totally within our control even if we know deep-down that is an illusion. Why else would we feel so secure having "church" end at precisely the same time every Sunday since Jesus ascended?
Why do we wait on God? Because Jesus waited on The Father for instruction. Because the disciples waited for The Holy Spirit until Pentecost even though they didn't know exactly what they were waiting for. We wait on God because we expect Him to show up. Like all really worthwhile things in life, He is worth waiting for.
Christian waiting is different than wishing. Christian waiting is active, full of expectation. I waited for our daughter to be born after Beth became pregnant in a very active way. I prepared for her arrival. I poured money, time, and effort into waiting for her arrival. I should wait on God in the same manner. I should spend myself actively preparing for Him to arrive.
As I type this some people are praying, some reading the bible, some expressing their love to God by quietly worshiping Him as they wave a flag, and some are meditating. To an outsider it may look very passive, even boring. To those who are physically, emotionally, and mentally invested it is a time filled with passion.
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Thanks for this reflection. I just preached last week on Luke 24:49 when Jesus told the disciples to wait or tarry in Jerusalem. The word wait/tarry in Greek means literally "to sit down". That sort blew all of us away. Thanks processing your thoughts in print that all who read may be blessed and challenged.
ReplyDeleteLuke 24:49
καθίζω,v \{kath-id'-zo}
1) to make to sit down 1a) to set, appoint, to confer a kingdom on one 2) intransitively 2a) to sit down 2b) to sit 2b1) to have fixed one's abode 2b2) to sojourn, to settle, settle down