When Waiting Is Not Funny

One major point of the two sermons I heard today was the virtue of waiting. Things that really matter take a lot of time to grow. Like relationships, or trust, or faith, or virtue. An oak tree takes 60 years to grow, a mongo seed can do it in a matter of days- in a petri dish! The key here is obviously the time element.

Yes we all know it by heart but that knowledge can never lessen the energy-draining effect of waiting. Whether it’s about repairing a broken trust or pursuing an elusive relationship that doesn’t seem to lead anywhere, it’s always the waiting that kills.

It is easy to tell people to sit it out and just wait for the heavens to grant their prayers. That would sound spiritual and sensible. You can clap your friend’s back when the topic comes up. You can try to make fun of it. We can all have a good laugh.

But remember that it’s not funny for everyone.

It’s not funny for someone who took his board exam the third time around. Not funny for a married couple who still don’t have a baby after many years of marriage. Not funny for a woman is still single while she’s in her late thirties. Not funny for a guy who got his fifth rejection.

Only God knows why some of us are to be tested with waiting. May we have the grace to shut up when we are most tempted to make fun of a friend’s waiting problem.

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” –Galatians 6: 2