300 Days for 300 Years: A Commemorative Devotional of the Presbytery of Philadelphia
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Rev. Kevin Ireland, Pastor, First Presbyterian Church in Springfield (Flourtown)

  • Morning Psalms Psalm 18:1-20; 147:12-20
  • First Reading Amos 4:6-13
  • Second Reading 2 Peter 3:11-18
  • Gospel Reading Matthew 21:33-46
  • Evening Psalms Psalm 126; 62

The Wait Is Long

Waiting is hard. The more life-giving and exciting the object of our waiting is, the harder it becomes to wait. So, if God is the omni-good, most important “thing” in all existence, waiting on the righteousness of God, the coming of the Kingdom can be the hardest wait we experience.

We often have a front row seat to the suffering of the world, especially the more we faithfully serve the poor, the oppressed, the hungry and the victimized.

In this meantime it can be tempting to be carried away by any error or teaching that makes things seem less dire than they are; to obscure the injustices around us.

We will often look for any way we can read Scripture or interact with our world that makes the wait seem less difficult; readings that allow us to ignore or soften the injustice and unrighteousness in the world (and in ourselves).

Instead, let us grow in grace and truth within the wait (and not in spite of it), so we will be strengthened for the work that lies ahead.

Lord, grow us in grace within the waiting. Amen.