Waiting

Something is wrong with me, but it is not covid.  I have taken two covid tests and they have been negative.

 This is a  respiratory thing, a cold, a mild case of flu.  Whatever it is, I am on the upswing.  On Saturday my voice was shot - the alto became a basso profundo.  But now I am mostly  sounding like myself.  The coughing has abated and I am close to being "back to normal." But there is still some congestion and I have that achy feeling in my bones that says - wait.   I am aware that if I push my recovery, I could make things worse. 

 It is very similar to my pickleball condition.  I had minor surgery 5 weeks ago and the doctor has been crystal clear that I have to wait 6 weeks until I can play again.  Because if I push it, I could make things worse.  So, today is a day of rest whether I like it or not.

One of my favorite writings it by Theihard  de Chardin "Trust in the Slow Work of God."  And it really is all about waiting and in the unseen hand of God. .  There is a line: "We are quite naturally impatient in everything."  Yes!

So I write this as an act of faith that in the waiting there is healing and there is growth.  And in the waiting there will be opportunities for something new to emerge. 

Maxine Shonk writes about the "sacrament" of waiting.  Maybe that is a good word.  A definition of sacrament is:  something regarded as having a sacred character or a mysterious meaning.

I think about all the times of waiting in life - waiting for birth, for death, for news of a job, for love, for healing, for graduation.  We wait and wait and wait.  Maybe if we understand that the waiting is a sacrament - a sacred, holy, mysterious time - we will know that God is hidden, subversive, underground at work.  I think that is called faith.

May the God of FAITHFULNESS be with you,.

holding you, believing in you, bringin you to wholeness.

May bthis God be with you in all that enters your life, 

in the dark and light times, in desert and green times.

May you be blessed with a sense of knowing God'

s presence and love in every [person you meet.

May the blessing of FAITHFULNESS be on you.