Psalm 130
Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.
Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my supplications!
If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
Lord, who could stand?
But there is forgiveness with you,
so that you may be revered.
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
more than those who watch for the morning,
more than those who watch for the morning.
O Israel, hope in the Lord!
For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
and with him is great power to redeem.
It is he who will redeem Israel
from all its iniquities.
Reflection There is something ‘not yet’ about this coming Sunday morning. Although the calendar reads “Easter Sunday,” our “Alleluias” are stuck in our throat. How can we sing Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia while we and all the peoples of the earth are under attack by hidden cells scheming to make us their slave? to kill us? How can we sing Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia when we are ordered not to touch or breath or be within six feet of one another for fear of our deadly potential? Although the calendar reads, “Easter Sunday” it seems ill timed and tasteless to celebrate Easter Sunday in the tradition with which we have been accustomed. This is the “not yet” part of Easter.
I believe if we were to celebrate this day with gleaming gold threaded vestments, the appointed readings and expected prayers we would be clinging to tradition and sentiment rather than abiding in the living, breathing Word of God. These extraordinary times invite extraordinary responses to express our selves as God’s people. This Easter calls for spaciousness within which we can wait, held in abeyance between Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday, which is where I believe we hover as we witness death by a virus that has enslaved our bodies much as our distorted ways of living have enslaved our culture and economy.
What then is the good new this Easter? Even though we wait in the uncertain space of social distancing and quarantine that does not mean all is lost. We still have cause to celebrate because our God is faithful. On this promise we lay our lives and wait with confidence. We the people of God have known tireless times of waiting from the beginning. This is what our psalmists and prophets sing about.
“Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and God shall strengthen your heart, wait, I say, on the Lord. Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.” From Psalm 27.14
From Psalm 130 “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in God’s word I hope… for with God there is steadfast love.. and great power to redeem.”
The prophet Isaiah puts it this way, ”but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31 This is God’s promise to us as we wait for liberation from the constraints of Covid-19; as we wait to be together again, to put on our gold threaded vestments, light the new fire and with our whole hearts sing, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
Everything is not alright this Sunday morning, in fact we have no idea how things will be forever changed. But with God in God’s already not yet Kingdom, we wait. We wait in confidence and hope for even the ravages of Covid-19 will be redeemed. So, rejoice! God is with us now and always.
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WAITING ON GOD: IN BETWEEN GOOD FRIDAY & RESURRECTION SUNDAY
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