Waiting

Today I am stuck in the waiting room. Waiting for college to start. Waiting to find the church to which God has called me. Waiting for the washing machine to finish. The third one is less important but nevertheless part of my life. Why do we dislike and indeed struggle with waiting so much? No one likes to have to wait at the supermarket checkout we all want what we want now. In an instant. Instant coffee, fast-food, microwave meals, buy-now pay-later.... Now, now, now, now, now! And so the postmodern world was created. What happened to planning and cooking meals from scratch and saving money to buy the things we want? I can't say that I am a great fan of ready made meals. I actually enjoy cooking and the relaxation it seems to bring as I mess around in the kitchen. Nor do I like instant coffee but alas I have to admit to my sins - the occasional take-out and not seeming to be able to save any money. I guess not working means that saving for a rainy day is out at the moment. It is well and truly raining! 

I am a post-modern woman. I want everthing now, not tomorrow. I try not to be impatient but I guess I was kind of made this way. I am a product of my enviroment. Like most post-modernists I like different forms of media and I like to have my senses bombarded with information. I can't just sit in front of the TV I have to be doing something else at the same time. Be that reading a book, chatting, texting, emailing... Most evening I sit in front of the TV watching a film whilst conversing with cyber-space on the Internet. Perhaps this multi-tasking is a woman thing, but no, my husband is sat on the other sofa doing the exact same thing. We are even known to instant message each other -jJust to reassure one another that we are there. Sometimes we even manage to talk! So why then in the age of post-modernism and mass media do we expect people to sit on uncomfortable pews and listen to a monologue of preaching? Is this really the way forward? For someone who has not been brought up in a church environment surely this is a strange and unusual experience. What is the answer? Cafe church? Seek-friendly church? Church in a pub?

What should church look like? I guess church is all about the people. Indeed church is the people. The church is the body of Christ. But didn't Jesus spend most of His time with the poor and needy of society, the hurting and the lost. As I wait for the things that are important to me I cannot help but ponder these questions. What does God have in store for me? Am I listening and am I able to look outside the box? My brother's collie has recently had some puppies which he keeps in his barn. I went to see them the other day (I couldn't resist another cuddle). They sit patiently waiting to be fed in the expectancy that someone will come long and do so. They wait in expectancy that some day they will end up in the right home for them. Can I be patient? Can I learn and be fed by God's word whilst I wait? I continue to wait with expectancy.