I said to my soul... Wait without hope

 Is there anything more agonizing in life than waiting? It is one of the most common themes in the book of the Psalms. "How long, O lord?" is a common refrain. When we are younger the waiting is usually quickly satisfied... "How long till we get there?" "When are we going to eat?".  With age, the questions get more difficult and the waiting is sometimes LONG and agonizing. Waiting for the wayward child, waiting for the next career promotion, waiting, waiting, waiting, and then some more waiting.

When I was in college, I faced my first LONG encounter with waiting and uncertainty. As I look back on it now, I realize I made a much bigger deal out of it than it deserved, but that's how life works. During that period, I dove into some deep philosophical books on the subject, but it was ultimately a poem that spoke to me in the most impactful way and I have referenced this poem many times in my life..

“I said to my soul, be still and wait without hope, for hope would be hope for the wrong thing; wait without love, for love would be love of the wrong thing; there is yet faith, but the faith and the love are all in the waiting. Wait without thought, for you are not ready for thought: So the darkness shall be the light, and the stillness the dancing.” TS Elliot from East Coker

In a previous blog post I talked about how integral faith hope and love are to a meaningful existence and there is deep scriptural truth to that concept. "wait without hope" is a reminder that our hopes need to be examined to be sure that they are properly placed. Hoping in the wrong things or putting too much hope in a particular thing only adds more agony and struggle to the waiting. The same concept is true if our Love is misplaced. We can love the wrong things too much and agony upon agony sets in. So, our faith, hope, and love are all purified in the process of waiting.... IF we use the opportunity to evaluate our hopes and love and reset them.

"Wait without thought, for you are not ready for thought." In periods of waiting, we can drive ourselves crazy examining scenarios and trying to make sense of things we have no control over. Peace in times of waiting isn't found by understanding all the machinations going on around us but rather in just being still.. Get comfortable with the darkness. Get comfortable in the not knowing and dance in the stillness! There is freedom there!

Be still and know that he is God...