Editor's note: "A pandemic advent: the arrival of a Savior for all" is a sampling of biblical meditations composed by members of the Concordia University Ann Arbor community. It is our prayer that you will take time during the Advent season to read and reflect upon God's Word and await the coming of Jesus with newfound anticipation and zeal through the Holy Spirit.
December 6 – Holding on to God’s timing
Isaiah 14:1–23, 2 Peter 3:1–18
Time is this odd phenomenon that can be both incredibly fast and unbearably slow. Regardless of which of these two you are currently experiencing, it is easy to get distracted by time. When life feels like it is going too slowly and we are waiting in anticipation for what is to come, it is easy to overlook what is currently in front of us. When time seems to be moving too fast, we can get caught up in what we miss.
Right now, I cannot quite decide in which phenomenon I am stuck. There are days where it does not seem possible that I am almost done with college, and there are days that I cannot wait to get into my own classroom to teach. Either way, it is often that I find myself distracted from what truly matters: Christ’s plan and timing over my own.
In Isaiah 14 we read about how God pulled Israel out of slavery and reversed their fortunes. God knew the final outcome of this plan, even when the people of Israel probably felt like time could not move any slower while they were enslaved. 2 Peter tells us, …that with the Lord one day is a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance (verse 8-9). Despite how time may feel to us, everything in His plan is working at the exact speed it is meant to. Christ shows us His grace on a daily basis, and He asks that we do our best to show that love and forgiveness to all people. God is consistently patient with us so we need to be patient and trust that His plan will always prevail.
In the meantime, we can hold on to the promise of His omniscient plan and choose daily to love others. You never know when God will choose to use you, regardless of if time feels like it needs to slow down or speed up.
MOLLIE HITTINGER is a student at CUW
View a full schedule of “The arrival of a Savior for all” readings here.
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