Wondering Out Loud: Waiting

"...waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ," Titus 2:13 (ESV)

I am back at the hospital, Barb is resting but awake and feeling more like herself (but still very much aware she has been through major surgery). The doctor has been in already this morning and indicated she is progressing very well. We are so grateful for the wonderful care Barb has been receiving here at Hartford Hospital. The staff has been attentive and thoughtful and that has made this experience much more bearable.

Still, we would have preferred to have been able to avoid this little excursion off the highway of life. Even under the gray clouds of February in Connecticut, our preference would be to be some other place than in this hospital. And, as great as the care is, Barb is anxious to return to her own home, her own bed, and my cooking (!?!), well perhaps the cooking of folks in the church, then.

Even when the hospital stay is a very beneficial necessity, it is hard to appreciate it when you know something even better, even more desirable, is waiting for you somewhere else. And isn't that what Paul reminds us in his little letter to Pastor Titus? Paul knows that there are many lessons we need to learn in this life, "training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age," Titus 2:12 (ESV)

But Paul knows that the lessons we are to learn are not ultimately for this life. Our destiny, "our blessed hope", is in the return of Jesus and receiving of our reward that he will bring with him! "But according to his promise we are waiting for a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells." 2 Peter 3:13 (ESV) Barb and I are looking forward to having her come home, even while being thankful for the benefits of her hospital stay.

As followers of Jesus we should be anxious to "get home", even while being thankful for the lessons we can learn while living and the ministries we can perform as we wait. I wonder what lessons God will teach me today as I wait for my blessed hope.