Maranatha!  Come Lord Jesus!  The waiting begins.   Happy New Year, the church year of Matthew  has begun!  There is a lot of excitement I am feeling and I know it is because of this prayerful and hopeful liturgical season.   Now, those who know me know that I am not the most patient person.  However, in this season, I savor the waiting. It is a time to ponder, reflect, pray and yes, slow down.  In the midst of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the Advent seasons is beckoning  me to be awake and alert.

Ready the way of the Lord! Today I had a great opportunity to practice waiting.  On a scale of 1 to 10 I would give myself  a 6.  I was invited to a family celebration which was in memory of their mother who died 2 years ago and her birthday was yesterday so the family gathered to celebrate, to honor, to remember.    It was a lovely celebration and I made some family connections of people I knew but did not know they were related to each other.  A very small world.  After the gathering dismissed I went to get in my car and realized I had locked my keys in my car.  Again for those who know me, you are not surprised by this.  So I walked back over to the house and realized that not only had I locked myself out of my car but also my house.   There was no one around and luckily a local cafe was open because they were decorating for Christmas.  I called AAA and waited for their assistance.  I waited and I waited, and I had just exhausted my patience and redialed AAA  when the local wrecker showed up to assist me in unlocking my car.  I gave them directions to where they would find my car and started walking in that direction.  Usually it takes about 10 minutes to get the car unlocked so I thought be patient Martha. When I looked up, I saw that my car door was wide open and the wrecker was waiting for me now…. they needed to see my membershipAAA card.

What an experience of waiting Lord Jesus, and this is only day one of Advent. What did I learn from this period of waiting.  Kindness is abundant when I let people know my dilemma, my need and my powerlessness.  The restaurant owner gave me her cell phone, told me who  to call, handed me the phone book and allowed me to wait inside when the restaurant was closed as she decorated her business.  I learned that no matter how much you may wish, there is no way to change a situation and there is much one can learn from waiting.

Waiting allows us to see that Jesus does come. has come will come, if we take the time to ponder, reflect, pray and see.  Thank you for coming into my day, when I needed  you in the kind gesture of the cafe owner and workers.   Come Lord Jesus!