Eastertide
June 6, 2014

Scripture Reading: Psalm 33:12-22

Our soul waits for the Lord;
   he is our help and shield.
Our heart is glad in him,
   because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,
   even as we hope in you.  — Psalm 33:20-22

 What is the difference in the verbs ennui and wait?

Ennui* is an instance or period of a feeling of weariness and dissatisfaction:  languor or emptiness of spirit

Wait** Means to hold back in expectation of:  delay in hope of:  defer until

Can you feel the difference in these two activities? We have all experience ennui. Ennui exists, more often than not, in those times when somewhere in the depths of our minds, we know a truth yet are unwilling to face it and so we do nothing or give up.

Waiting on the Lord entails faith. We pull those deep concerns and truths to the forefront and place them at the Lords feet with the full expectation that God will address our concern in God’s own time. That frees us from ennui and allows us to target our energies toward activities in service to God with the full knoowledge that God is working God’s purpose out and at the right time we will be invited to be a part of the solution to our deep concern. Who knows our deep concern just might go away on its own as we enter into new and even more meaningful service.

I attended a meeting recently where we discussed the decline of the traditional women’s programs in our churches. Younger women are not participating, most of them work outside the home, and they value the precious minutes of family time they have together. I do not know about you but we have five generations of people worshiping in our church with markedly different taste and needs. The church, however, is one of the few places left where intergenerational experiences are possible, and I believe these are important.

Prayer: Lord, I lay before you this day what I perceive as the continuing needs for intergenerational community while meeting the needs of five generations of your children. My soul now waits for your guidance. Amen

* http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/ennui

**http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/wait

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.