Lent: What are we waiting for?

Read John 4:27-42

Key verse: Do you not say, 'Four months more and then the harvest'? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. John 4: 35

Recently I saw a poster in the Greenwood library café – yes, you can drink coffee in the library – and it said: “Drink coffee. Do stupid things faster with more energy.” I laugh because I drink lots of coffee and I’m capable of doing stupid things – I don’t know about the faster part. But I’m also capable of doing the opposite. That is it’s easy to play a waiting game; to wait until the timing is right; to wait for a sign; to wait for harvest time.

The Presbyterian Church USA has this process known as “interim.” It’s been over a year since our pastor left for Houston and the best guess is that sometime around November we’ll probably have a new pastor. So we’re in this interim. And it’s easy to be waiting for the harvest instead of harvesting what’s around us.

I find it so easy to say “Just a few more months until we get our pastor.” This passage today challenges me - and maybe others - to open my eyes. There’s plenty of harvesting to be done even now. I was excited to hear that our church elders started looking at five or so projects that we can be doing right now – opening our eyes and harvesting.

There’s an urgency in Jesus’ words. A “do it now” kind of message. And for me, this applies to all areas of life.

What am I waiting for? What needs to be completed, or started, or nurtured? Maybe a relationship? Maybe a project?

What are we waiting for?