Waiting

I sat waiting. It had been a very long time. Too long. There was a stench of tobacco and beer that lingered in the cold night air. Yesterday's newspapers brought little warmth to the soul. There was no good news, or so it seemed.

The platform echoed of yester-year. The hard wooden benches had seen weary travelers for decades. Chocolate vending machines still adorned the walls but there was no Cadbury's fruit and nut to be had. It had been eaten long ago. The wooden bridge that allowed passengers to cross to the other side of the tracks echoed with the footsteps of many who had trodden the same path. Those who had felt the same pain of frustration. 

The lost baggage area contained an assortment of umbrellas, scarves and hats. Folk had discarded their protection from the elements. Old leather briefcases containing sandwich boxes of now rotten fruit awaited owners who never came. Mysterious packages remained unopened on the shelves. Most people however kept their own baggage close to their chest or strapped to their backs. The weight seemed more of a comfort than an inconvenience. 

How much longer? 

The night sky was lit with a thousand stars that danced and twinkled enticing the traveller to far distant shores. But no-one was going anywhere tonight. The last train had gone. We continued to wait. Ghosts of the past waited with us. Their heavy chains clanking as they shuffled along in a chain-gang of confusion. Not knowing where to go or what to do for fear of getting it wrong.

Why was I waiting? Should I just be patient or complain to the ticket man? Was my journey so far in vain? 

I made myself comfortable as best I could. I wrapped my scarf tighter around my neck and pulled up the collar on my jacket. I felt suffocated but I would survive. 

The more the clock ticked the more isolated and alone I felt. Sleep was not my friend. As dawn broke my eventual slumber was disturbed some more. As daylight flooded onto the platform I began to realize I was not alone. There were other fellow travellers caught up in the temporary derailment. As I looked and smiled at them they began to smile back. A few nodded their head in acknowledgement of a shared journey. Tentatively I opened my mouth to wish them a good morning. Soon the silence and fear of the night had vanished as we began to talk and share our stories of travel plans scuppered. 

We were all weary. We were all tired of dragging our baggage around for so long. 

I suddenly realized I wasn't alone. I wasn't the only one with tales of woe. The derailment had effected us all; in different ways perhaps, but the fatigue and pain was the same and sat etched on all our faces. 

What now? How much longer would we have to wait? 

An announcement interrupted our chatting. The next train was due shortly. In a flurry of commotion and a lifting of voices spirits began to be restored. The ghosts of the past finally put to bed. Faith sustained and now multiplied. Today was a new day. A new song would be sung. 

The journey wasn't over yet....

What do you hear? What do you see?

Shhhuuuu listen.... what do you hear?

This morning there is the quiet pitter patter of rain drops breaking into the quiet. How often do we actually stop and listen properly? How often do we actually stop? The world is a busy and demanding place. We live amongst the noise. How can we expect to hear God unless we stop and listen? I am always blown away by the way he communicates. It is so easy to miss him if we are not careful. Is God in the rain? Now there's a question.


Wait, look.... what do you see?

I have been on holiday this last week and have had fun visiting different places and taking a few crazy photos, as you do. I have also been amazed at spotting both a kestrel and a peregrine falcon out in the wild (well I think that's what they were), oh... and a number of wild rabbits. Got to keep that food chain going. On a slightly different note, we also have a frog living in our shed, either that or my husband needs his eyes testing! I have no idea what he is doing there as we have no fish pond nearby. The frog, that is, not my husband.


What I hear and what I see often draw me to the scriptures. These are the verses that God has encouraged me with as a result of stopping to look and listen.  May you to hear the gentle whisper of God and see signs of Him as He encourages you on your journey.

The Lord appears to Elijah 1 Kings 19:9-12

And the word of the Lord came to him: ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’
¹⁰ He replied, ‘I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.’
¹¹ The Lord said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.’
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. ¹² After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 
 

^{Isaiah 40:31}

³¹ But those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.

 

Waiting

 

I have spent much of my time in the garden these last couple of days. Lots of pulling of weeds, cutting of hedges, and digging of soil has taken place. I have also spent lots of time garden planning. We can plan all we want to but, as any gardener will tell you, you don't have full control. Sure, you can rip out and tear down whatever we want but try to grow something in a sunny spot that does not like full sun and you are on to a looser. Plants need the right kind of soil and conditions for them to flourish. People are much the same. We all need to be loved, nurtured, fed and watered. We need to right conditions to grow well and to bare fruit. I love apple trees. I love seeing those first buds appear and burst into flower and then for the flowers turn into the most tiniest apple like shapes. (I am sure there is a name for whatever they are called, apart from tiny little apples - no idea what that is though.) The best thing is to watch the apples grow and ripen ready to be picked. Who can resist the mouth watering delicious taste of a crunchy apple straight from the tree. Not to mention apple crumble and ice-cream, or lashings of custard if you are my husband. Yum! 

Today as I looked out on my garden that was being watered by the rain I saw a tiny bird sat on the rooftop. What on earth was it doing sat in the rain? It, like me, was waiting. Waiting for the rain to stop and the sun to come out again. I don't like the rain but without it nothing grows. The Christian walk can be a bumpy ride sometimes and sometimes we hit a stormy patch. Life has many twists and turns but it is through the rough stormy times that we grow the most. It is perhaps these times that draw us closer to God, sometimes kicking and screaming. 

This morning I have been reading Psalm 27, here it is:

 

¹ The Lord is my light and my salvation—
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
    of whom shall I be afraid?

² When the wicked advance against me
    to devour me,
it is my enemies and my foes
    who will stumble and fall.

³ Though an army besiege me,
    my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
    even then I will be confident.

⁴ One thing I ask from the Lord,
    this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the Lord
    and to seek him in his temple.

⁵ For in the day of trouble
    he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
    and set me high upon a rock.

⁶ Then my head will be exalted
    above the enemies who surround me;
at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy;
    I will sing and make music to the Lord.

⁷ Hear my voice when I call, Lord;
    be merciful to me and answer me.

⁸ My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
    Your face, Lord, I will seek.
⁹ Do not hide your face from me,
    do not turn your servant away in anger;
    you have been my helper.

Do not reject me or forsake me,
    God my Savior.
¹⁰ Though my father and mother forsake me,
    the Lord will receive me.

¹¹ Teach me your way, Lord;
    lead me in a straight path
    because of my oppressors.
¹² Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
    for false witnesses rise up against me,
    spouting malicious accusations.

¹³ I remain confident of this:
    I will see the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living.
¹⁴ Wait for the Lord;
    be strong and take heart
    and wait for the Lord.
NIV (2011)

This is my prayer today, may it be yours to.  

Waiting

Advent is all about waiting....  I can't say I am a particularly patient person and it seems to be getting worse as I get older.  Still wait I must.  Have you ever waiting for a bus that doesn't arrive?  Then four buses come along at the same time.  This is the world of Jo at the moment.  Christmas it seems is just around the corner - or at least I hope it is. 


May the Lord bless you and keep you this Christmas - and leave you something nice under the tree!    

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.