Waiting on the Lord

This is a computer-generated transcription that has been included to make the homily searchable.  It has not been verified by the author.

“Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You too must be patient, make your hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand.” This passage from James that we heard today has a lot of significance for our little Mission of Divine Mercy. Because we felt the Lord in the very beginning, calling us to be open and attentive to the prophetic words that He has given and continues to give to His Church. There are many different places and persons today, and including our little community has sensed ourselves special, special words that He has been giving us that the Lord is preparing great, surprising, powerful graces of mercy for these very difficult times that we’re living. And even at this little Mission of Divine Mercy is a little part of His great plans for the world today. But He often seems very slow in accomplishing those promises. I’ve often wanted buy the Lord a calendar, because I think He loses track of time. I imagined Him sometimes realize, oh that’s right, I forgot I was supposed to come help so and so. I think He’s over committed. And He’s  spread Himself too thin, maybe? Because He seems that like I say, loses track of time. And so, a lot of what our little Mission of Divine Mercy has been doing has been waiting, waiting on the Lord. Doesn’t that sound like a fun exciting thing to do? Wait on the Lord? You know, if someone asked what does your community do? Well, we wait. We wait. And that’s not very inspiring, right? I imagine a recruiting poster, which would have a picture of a waiting room on it. And say something like, are you tired of quick, satisfying results? Would you like more frustration in your life? Come to the Mission of Divine Mercy. So, I thought that was kind of a weird thing, right for our community to be waiting on the Lord so much. But then as I looked at scripture, I began to realize that it’s very common. In fact, just in a passage we heard today of St. James, he says, as an example of suffering and patience, “Brethren, take,” who – who do you think he’s going to say take?  Maybe Job, right? Job, but maybe the example we think of, and he actually goes on to mention Job, but it says, “take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord.” So, he said, as an example of suffering, and patience, that is with speaking in the name of the Lord, comes a lot of suffering, and a lot of patience, a lot of waiting. And so, I think that it’s important for a lot of people today who are suffering, and discouraged to hear this call, because it’s throughout, what’s striking, the methods throughout Scripture in the Old and New Testament, and I just want to read you a few examples. The Psalm 62 says, “My soul waits in silence, for God alone,” waits in silence. Psalm 130 says, “I wait for the Lord, my soul does wait. And in His Word do I hope. My soul waits for the Lord, more than watchmen for the morning.” And Psalm 37, “rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him. Do not fret because of the man who carries out wicked schemes, cease from anger, and forsake wrath. Do not fret, it only leads to evil doing for evil doers will be cut off. But those who wait for the Lord will inherit the land.” Those who wait for the Lord will inherit the land.  And in Lamentations that says, “the Lord is good to those who wait for Him,” the Lord is good to those who wait for him, “to the soul that seeks Him and it is good that one should wait quietly, for the salvation of the Lord.” And Isaiah 30 says, “for the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are those who wait for Him.” That is, the Lord will bring justice, He will not continue to allow injustice. But blessed are those who wait, because so many times we try to take justice into our own hands, and we make a bad situation worse. So, Blessed are those who wait for Him. So, the Old Testament in the Old Testament, there’s this great wait for the Savior. And especially as we heard today, and as throughout this time of Advent, we’re hearing these great prophecies proclaiming the Savior who will come. And in the New Testament, when Jesus comes, then He Himself calls us to wait for His return. And like He, we know that example is the parable of the wise and the foolish virgins, as they are waiting. Those who know who are prepared to wait, and those who aren’t prepared for long wait. And Jesus also says, “Be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the marriage feast, so that they may open to him at once, when he comes and knocks” – those who are waiting. And St. Paul, for instance, says, “as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ,” waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The letter to the Hebrews says, “Christ will appear a second time to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him”. It doesn’t say those who are good or those who believe in Him. He says, “save those who are eagerly waiting for him.” And St. Peter, in 2 Peter 3 says, Since, He says, “since all these things that everything will be dissolved by fire.” He says, “what sort of persons are you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of the Lord,” waiting for but awaiting which is also hastening the day of the Lord, “because of which the heavens will be kindled and dissolve, and the elements will melt with fire.” But according to His promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. We wait for new heavens and a new earth, earth, and we even hasten it. And then we had the great book of Revelation, and the Lord’s great promises to come soon. And in especially this time of Advent that we’re living is this great time of hope and waiting on the Lord. And the Church says that contemplative communities as ours, as our little Mission of Divine Mercy tries to be, have a special role in waiting and hoping for the coming of the Lord. So waiting is hard. waiting on the Lord is hard, but effective. When we don’t wait on the Lord, when impatient, when we try to take things into our own hands, it can cause all sorts of damages. And just think, for instance of Eve, not willing to wait on the Lord’s plans, but wanting to take things literally into her own hands. And from there, so much disaster came. And contrast that to our Blessed Mother, waiting on the Lord, the waiting on the Lord which leads to victory.  Waiting on the Lord for instance to justify her in front of Joseph, how could she explain the fact that she was already with child, that the situations she had to wait on the Lord Himself to act for Joseph, and for the world? And on Holy Saturday, when so many of the disciples have given up and given in? She is the one who is still strong, waiting and hoping, waiting in hope and in waiting and hope that leads to infinite joy to the glory of the Lord. And James today, the passage we heard from James, gives us the very human example, “be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord.”  So, he says, “see how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it, until it receives the early and the late rains, that is God is the God of order.” And so, there is a time for it, time and proper stages, the early and the late rains, “you too must be patient, make your hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand.” So, there’s a time to plow, a time to sow a time to reap each then has its proper time. And it has to be done. at the proper time not too early and not too late. There are times of intense work. And there are times for a farmer of more waiting.” And so, a farmer has to respect the natural cycles and times that God has established in creation. For instance, he can’t just go out and start yelling at the plants to make them grow quicker or try to pull them up and see if that’ll get them to grow quicker. He has to be patient and wait on that. So, what does that mean to wait on the Lord? It might seem like it means doing nothing. But it’s something very different from doing nothing. So, to try to give an idea of what it means, it means trusting in God, which can be very challenging, hoping in, God it means persevering, enduring, being steadfast in hard times. Wondering sometimes how long, how long my Lord, like that cry which resounds through scripture, how long oh Lord. Like think of the defenders of a fort, or a city, who have to wait, waiting on the Lord in those cases would be like, not giving up and not giving in. And also, not acting rashly. But waiting for the right time. It means seeking God, seeking God’s will and not our own, cooperating with God, accepting God’s timing, which can be difficult, right? We are impatient, accepting God’s timing. And then acting at the right time doesn’t mean not acting, but it means acting at the right time. And this is the path which leads to joy, victory and glory, because it is the path of God Himself. And so, just to conclude with one final passage, this is from Psalm 27. “Wait for the Lord with courage. Be stout hearted and wait for the Lord.” And so, with our Blessed Mother, as we prepare to celebrate her great Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe tomorrow, we can offer Jesus the sacrifice of waiting. He himself who, in His time on Earth had to experience so much waiting, the cross of waiting and in these very difficult times that we’re living in which many are discouraged, and people can either give up or act rashly. He’s calling us to this waiting in the Lord, which means fidelity, trust, and steadfastness. “Wait for the Lord with courage. Be stout hearted and wait for the Lord.” Amen.

KEYWORDS / PHRASES:
James 5:7-10
Psalm 27
2 Peter 3
Isiah 30
Waiting