Message from Pastor Katherine

I am writing this newsletter article in the waiting room of a hospital. I’m waiting here with the McGue family as Bradley’s liver transplant surgery takes place. Families all around me are in various stages of wait. Some are anxiously pacing the room, while others are snoozing in uncomfortable positions. Beyond their waiting habits, I wonder what their stories are.

Most importantly of all, I am aware that Brad and his family have been waiting, waiting, waiting many years for this day to come. Their everyday life has been full of waiting for the past several years. Plans were always made with a tentative “unless we get the call…” Cell phones were always ready at the hip in case the call for the liver came. And while their wait is something the rest of us can not imagine, the McGue family knew they were not waiting alone. Countless persons have been faithfully praying for this day to come. Others have always been on standby to help the family out at a moment’s notice. Today, Susan’s phone keeps buzzing as family members, neighbors, friends, and St. Peter’s members call for updates. “Is the liver here yet?” “When is the transplant going to happen?” “When is it going to be over?” “Did the liver take?” “Is he going to be okay?”

I am happy to report that Brad’s transplant surgery was a success. But the celebration of this event is still muted, because the days and weeks following a transplant are very critical. Complications can occur, so it is difficult to celebrate when he isn’t completely out of the woods yet. So, we wait to celebrate this event which is a true answer to prayer and a blessed gift from God and the family of the organ donor who had to make a difficult decision to bless others in a time of grief.

Waiting, waiting. Advent is partly a season of wait, and patience. As we prepare for Christmas when we celebrate the coming of Jesus, we are reminded to wait for God in other areas of our life, and live in faith. In times of wait, God teaches us patience.

Author Henri Nouwen writes, “Without patience, our expectation degenerates into wishful thinking. Patience comes from the word ‘patior’ which means to suffer. The first thing that Jesus promises is suffering. But he calls these birth pains. And so, what seems a hindrance becomes a way; what seems like an obstacle becomes a door; what seems a misfit becomes a cornerstone. Jesus changes our history from a series of sad incidents and accidents into a constant opportunity for a change of heart. To wait patiently therefore means to allow our weeping and wailing to become the purifying preparation by which we are made ready to receive the joy which is promised us.”

Let this be our prayer this Advent season, that we may be taught patience, dependence, and trust, so that God’s will may be done in our lives. The best news, of course, is that the waiting will end - our fulfillment will come in the eternal life that we have been promised through the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Additionally, God does not ask that we wait alone. God’s own Spirit is right there with us to give us comfort, patience, and peace, and to help us keep our hope fixed on the promises eternal.