The Waiting Lies

I have one week of waiting in joyful Advent anticipation under my belt. The challenge I posed to you and to myself last week, to practice joyful waiting, did cross my mind a few times as I was out and about the last few days. Like when I was in a very long line at Kohl’s to make a return. Or when I was on the phone for a very long time trying to get a credit card issue resolved. Or every time I turned on the kitchen lights and saw the one burned out bulb that I had asked my husband to replace three days ago.

These are all small waits. Often, we are called to endure much heavier and more significant waits. Waiting for test results, waiting for someone’s change of heart, waiting for an apology, waiting for healing. With this focus on waiting, I have discovered something that I never realized before. When our minds are in waiting mode, lies can creep in. This discovery was affirmed in a video I listened to as part of an online Advent retreat.

There were four lies mentioned in the video, that can creep in when we are waiting. They are things we say to ourselves that threaten our ability to endure the waits.

• I am running out of time.
• This is a waste of time.
• God has forgotten me.
• This isn’t the plan I had for my life. Nothing good can come of this.

If we let the first two lies take over, we tend to lose patience, take action when we shouldn’t, and end up making things worse. If we believe the last two lies, we lose faith and trust that God is in control. We lose hope. The wait becomes an unnecessarily heavy burden.

We need to be conscious of when these lies creep in and recognize them for what they really are. We need to replace them with joyful anticipation as we wait for whatever it is we are being called to wait for at this time in our lives. Live in the peace and calm that God is with us in the waiting and in whatever comes when the waiting ends.

Heading to the basement to get a lightbulb.

Joan