... wait
We’ve just moved house – still in the same town, and only a 10 minute walk from where we lived before, but we had come to the conclusion that we could no longer manage the stairs to our second floor flat, and should seek somewhere a bit more accessible. So we looked at tall buildings with lifts and wonderful views, riverside apartments, flats in old rambling buildings and swanky newbuilds. Covid put a stop to things for a bit, so it hasn’t been a speedy business. But we were prepared to wait till the right place came along.
We were really pleased when, like Goldilocks, we found somewhere that was just right. We couldn’t move in straight away, so we thought we’d rush in and get it decorated and done up while we were waiting. We’ve always lived in manses or rental accommodation, so it’s quite exciting to have somewhere we can put our own stamp on.
But somehow that didn’t get done, and we finally moved in at the beginning of May, with no changes – just as it was. Not everything works, but it’s fine. We can get settled a bit at a time, give ourselves a breathing space.
When we first decided it was time to look for somewhere new, we couldn’t have imagined the process would take more than four years. But we don’t regret the wait. We learnt a lot about ourselves and our priorities. We’re even glad we waited to decorate, because the place feels quite different now we are living there. For one thing, apart from a short time in a house, we have never lived on the ground before! The world is right outside our front door, and we love it.
Waiting must be good for us. There’s a lot of it in the Bible, and in the Christian year: Advent, for example, and Lent, and this odd little bit between Easter and Pentecost. This is the time when the disciples were actually instructed to wait – to wait in Jerusalem. They didn’t know how long, or precisely what was going to happen. All they knew was that once the Holy Spirit came upon them, everything would start up again. They would be filled with power, and go out into the world to witness to Jesus. The whole book of Acts was waiting to erupt into life.
But thanks be to God, they were given this time of quiet. After the trauma and chaos of Jesus’s terrifying night-time arrest, the horror of seeing him die in agony, then unbelievable rumours leading to glorious confirmation that he was alive; after all that, came a precious still, small time, to regroup, take stock, make sense of what had happened, and wait.
These times are to be treasured. Like us all, I expect, I love the explosions of activity, busy times, getting things done. But God knows we also need to stop and look around, to rest where we are and remember who we are, before dashing off again.
With that deep hush subduing all
our words and works, that drown
the tender whisper of thy call,
as noiseless let thy blessing fall
as fell thy manna down.
Speak through the earthquake, wind and fire,
O still, small voice of calm.
John Greenleaf Whittier
Janet Wootton
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