“Holy Patience”

SCRIPTURE

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 40:30

DEVOTIONAL

Fraternal twins, a brother and a sister, are in their mother’s womb, just days before birth, when they strike up a conversation.

The sister said to the brother, “I’ve been thinking about this, and I believe there is life after birth.” Her brother gasped, “Ha! That’s crazy. What gave you that idea? This is obviously all there is. What more do you want? We have everything we need as long as we cling to the cord that feeds us.”

The little girl insisted, “There must be something more than this dark place. There must be something else, a place where there is freedom to move.” Her hope fell on deaf ears and her brother just shook his head. After some silence, the sister said hesitantly, “I have something else to say, and I’m afraid you won’t believe it, either.” She paused, “I believe…that there is a mother.”

“A mother?!” he shouted. “What in the world are you talking about? I have never seen a mother and neither have you. Who put that idea in your head? I told you; this place is all there is. Why do you always want more?” He took a deep breath to calm down. “Look, this is not such a bad place, after all. We have all we need. Just be satisfied with what we have.”

The sister didn’t dare say anything more. Time passed as they sat in the dark when suddenly, there was a deep push and a strong pull around them. When they felt them, she said to her brother, “Don’t you feel these squeezes, these pains? They’re getting more intense by the day.” “Yes,” he paused to honor the truth, “I know. But you’ll get used to them and we’ll just have to learn how to deal with them. It’s not ideal, I agree, but that’s just the way the world is.”

She paused and finally said, “Well, and you’re not going to like this.” Her brother sighed in frustration. But she continued anyway, “I think that these squeezes are there to get us ready, to prepare us.” She said, “I think the pain is preparing us … to see our mother face-to-face.”

The brother just shook his head in silence. He was worn of the conversation. He just closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep. But the girl stayed awake, staring in the dark, waiting…. 1

PRAYER

Come Lord, Jesus.
We don’t know how.
We don’t know when.
Just come.
Amen.

1 Based on Henri Nouwen’s, Our Greatest Gift: A Meditation on Dying and Caring. (New York: Harper One, 1989).

The daily devotionals for the season of Lent are written by Rev. Dr. Kirk Hall, Associate Pastor of Formation at First Presbyterian Church from 2010-2013. He is currently a founding partner at The Metis Project, LLC. and lives with his wife and two girls in Salisbury, Connecticut.