Rev Rosie writes January 2024

Rev Rosie Bunn
Rector of All Saints Church, Belton
and
St Peter & St Paul Church, Burgh Castle

Watching and Waiting

 How good are you at waiting? Are you patient or impatient? Can you stand in a queue and quietly while away the time until it is your turn, or are you frustrated at having to wait? For many it is annoying and upsetting having to wait for important appointments, especially if you are one of the 6.5 million people waiting for treatment in England,* or one of the nearly 3.29 million patients waiting for over 18 weeks, or one of the nearly 391,000 patients who have waited over a year for treatment. With this comes a degree of worry and concern for us all, but especially the people who are doing the waiting, and those watching loved ones as they wait
 
If you are blessed to be expecting a baby in your family, nine months can seem an eternity, especially those last few weeks from what I remember! During that time, there are things to do and preparations to be made, in providing a welcome for the newborn
 
We have just been through a time of preparation; of watching and waiting for Christmas to arrive. The children (and many adults) have enjoyed counting down the days, and the pleasure of their Advent calendars. And then, Christmas is over. New Year has come and gone. The decorations are put away for another year, and the watching and waiting is done for another year!
 
My family has had a time of watching and waiting; hopefully and expectantly. In July we welcomed an addition to the family, my granddaughter, Keziah. She was born in Malawi where my son and his wife have been working. They applied for her British Passport at the beginning of September, and we are still waiting to hear that she has been granted one. Our waiting has included the ‘will they/won’t they’ be here for Christmas? We have been watching for messages from our Malawian family, but as yet no passport, so no pre-Christmas flights
 
Sometimes waiting seems to go on for far longer than we had anticipated! Whether it be for something that we expected to happen without difficulties, or an occurrence that delays through circumstances we had not foreseen
 
In the Bible there are numerous passages that spell out details of the birth of the expected Messiah (Jesus). The Hebrew people had been awaiting their Messiah for hundreds and hundreds of years, and in their waiting, many had stopped actively looking for the Messiah’s arrival. Even the leading Priests and Pharisees did not recognise Jesus; what they had expected was not what they got! In the New Testament, the writers of the letters (Paul, Peter and John) expected Jesus to return to rule and reign within their lifetime; we are still waiting. In one of Peter’s later letters he writes words of encouragement: Don’t overlook the obvious here, friends. With God, one day is as good as a thousand years, a thousand years as a day. God isn’t late with his promise as some measure lateness. He is restraining himself on account of you, holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change. 2 Peter 3: 8-9 We don’t talk about this very often, although the church’s season of Advent very much bring this to the fore, Christians are expected to live their lives with an expectation that Jesus will return, and we are to be ready when he comes
 
New Year is a time when we make New Year Resolutions; we focus on changes we want to make in our own personal lives. When my children were young I was keen to grow in patience. What a thing to ask for... I had more opportunities to learn patience than I expected or wanted! I wonder what your New Year’s Resolution is going to be. Like me, it could be to do with waiting patiently for something you eagerly desire
 
May you be blessed in the coming New Year                                                    
Rev Rosie Bunn

* information taken from the BMA website – data available for September 2023