Watching & Waiting
Isaiah 63:16–17; 64:1–8
The history of God’s people seems to have a lot of waiting in it. From Abraham, who waited most of his life for the child he was promised, to Moses, who waited in the wilderness 40 years to just receive a glimpse of the promised land, to the people of Judah, who waited 400 years after returning from exile for the birth of their savior. God has never worked on human time lines but He has done things at His own pace, when the time is truly right.
During these times of waiting God continually reminded them to keep alert and to watch for His coming. They were not to just go about their business until God acted, they were to be actively looking for, and praying for, Him to move.
The Advent season is a time of preparing our hearts for celebrating the birth of Jesus. We begin the season this year by remembering to watch and wait – we watch for God to act, and we wait for Him to do so in His time.
As we light this first candle to remember His people watching and waiting for the Messiah, we should also remember that we too are to be watching and waiting for the return of that same Messiah.