Romans 8:24-25 (NRSVUE)
For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope, for who hopes for what one already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.
Devotion
Being a Christian seems to involve a lot of….waiting. We wait through Advent for the birth of Christ. We wait through this season of Lent for his death and resurrection. We wait so much that we even have a designated color for it in the liturgical calendar. We wait.
This passage in Romans, however, shows us what’s on the other side of the coin from waiting—hope. When we wait, space is created for hope. If we received everything we wanted or were promised all at once, there would be no place (or maybe, even reason) for hope. But hope is, as Paul tell us here, what has saved us and it is our call as Christians to hope…and to wait with expectant hearts.
So, what should we do while we wait and hope? Franciscan priest Richard Rohr has a suggestion. He tells us that “we need a contemplative mind in order to do compassionate action.” There’s a relationship between living simply and doing God’s work in the world. Rohr recommends practicing the “second gaze” in our lives—our first gaze of a situation, person, or even ourselves is typically defensive, judging, and controlling. When we wait, it allows God to open space and we can now see with the second gaze. This gaze sees with compassion. It sees with the eyes of God. It sees with hope. It is from this contemplative, slow, waiting second gaze that compassion can now spring forth.
So, we will wait. And know that while we are waiting, God is working toward our ultimate hope.
Prayer
Gracious God, you are patient with us. Help us to be patient with you, with each other, and with your plans for the world. Our is hope with you, and only you. Amen.
Lizzy Steel