Saturday, December 3

Luke 2:25-32

Katie Elmore

“Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:

“Sovereign Lord, as You have promised,
You may now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen Your salvation,
which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and the glory of Your people Israel.”

As I pondered these verses about Simeon waiting patiently for the promised Messiah, I keep hearing the lyrics of an old Tom Petty song…“The waiting is the hardest part…”  I, personally, am terrible at waiting!  I get frustrated when I inevitably pick the slowest line at the grocery check-out.  I can’t fall asleep if I am waiting for the familiar sounds of Sarah coming in the back door after being out with friends.  I wait impatiently for return phone calls, a check in the mail, or for Friday to finally arrive at the end of an exhausting week!  Waiting is hard work!  Simeon holds tight to God’s promise of a savior in his lifetime; and God fulfills this promise as Simeon holds the Christ child in the temple.  What are God’s promises for us today?  I am reminded of God’s assurance in Matthew 28: 20 – “I am with you always, even to the end of the world.”  Now that’s a promise I can wrap around myself like a blanket!  God is with me….in the ordinary tasks of life, in single-motherhood, and all my moments on this earth.

Thank you God for keeping your promises!  Amen.