Saturday, March 21
Read: Psalm 130; Ezekiel 36:8-15; Luke 24:44-53
Hope in the Pauses
Waiting is familiar. It becomes part of the student routine in college, felt when you’re waiting for a response to your email asking for an extension or for a friend to come meet you for lunch or as the clock winds down in an important athletic match. Waiting marks the pause between arriving on campus as a new student and slowly growing into the person you were meant to be.
Your teachers, mentors, and supporters are not immune to waiting either. They are in your corner, waiting to see a ‘lightbulb’ moment in the classroom, to receive news that you’ve found your calling, or for the phone to ring with you asking for advice.
The problem with waiting, with those pauses, is that the result is not instantaneous. We want clarity, we want an answer! But during that pause is where we find room for hope. “I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word, I put my hope.” God is with us in the pauses. He sits with us through every quiet moment and through each second of uncertainty. And because of his presence, we are guided to hope.
In Luke, Jesus opens the minds of his disciples to an understanding of what has always been the plan. They were waiting and he was still with them. As He prepares to go to heaven he leaves them with a promise of fulfillment and they rejoice, even though they must once again wait. Again, the answer is not instantaneous, but the disciples have hope rooted in their trust in Jesus.
So, as you sit in a pause, in the familiarity of waiting, know that you are not alone. Whether you are a student, teacher, mentor, or supporter, know that you have people in your corner. God is waiting with you, let that truth fill you with hope.
Prayer:
Lord, I pray that you open our minds and give us the grace to wait while your plan unfolds. I pray that your presence is felt with certainty by all students, teachers, mentors, and supporters. Remind us to trust your promises and teach us to be hopeful through the pauses in our lives. Amen.
Dr. Kathleen Penney Childree ’15 is Vice President for Student Development and Dean of Students at Huntingdon College. Dr. Childree and her family are active at the St. Peter Catholic parish in Montgomery, Alabama.
