How long?

Psalm 79:5a -  New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

How long, O Lord?

What's the one question you always get when waiting is involved?

"How long?"

How long til dinner is done?  How long til we get there?  How long will the test take? 

How long before the cancer spreads?  How long before he has to leave again?

If waiting isn't something we as Western Christians do particularly well, it was something the Hebrew people know intimately.  The Psalms are filled with cries of "How long?"

The answer, of course, to the question of "How long" comes in the form of a babe in a manger. It comes through incarnation.  

And it comes in God's time.

We know as a child that the longest time in the world is the time it takes to wait for the line to end to ride the roller coaster.  Or the time it takes for your beach trip to come.  Or the time it takes for your birthday party to happen.

God's time, however, is like an instant.  God speaks and the spark begins.

God's answer when we ask "How long?" is "Both now, and not yet."

Waiting for the good stuff is worth it.  Taking the time to prepare for the good stuff is worth it.

Advent, the season of "How long?" is worth it.

How long, O Lord?  Help me to wait!  Amen