Waiting in Hope
Waiting in Hope
Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD. Lord, hear my voice!
I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning, more than those who watch for the morning.
O Israel, hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast love.– Psalm 130:1-7
Like the setting of the sun, the coronavirus gradually spread its darkness from east to west. Now, it seems as if the whole world has entered a time of darkness. As the darkness deepens, Psalm 130 gives voice to the despair we may feel, “Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice!” Those words were written by a psalmist who was in deep emotional and spiritual suffering. In our most difficult times, we may feel overwhelmed as if waves of fear and sorrow are washing over our heads.
To reduce the spread of the viral darkness, we isolate, we limit our physical contact with one another. While this reduces our physical risk, such isolation only increases our darkness. Like the psalmist, we must wait. “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word, I hope.” When we are in the depths of fear and sorrow we are called to wait and to hope.
Hope is nurtured as we wait. This waiting is not a helpless, idle, or meaningless waiting. It is purposeful waiting in remembrance. Hope begins with remembering the nature of God revealed in the Bible. We remember how God has worked within past times of deep darkness in the lives of God’s people. We also remember the steadfast love and mercy of God in our individual past.
In those times the character of God was revealed in the Hebrew word, hesed, meaning, “steadfast love.” Hesed is often used in the context of a relationship where one person is in significant need of help from another. This need is often essential to the survival of the one in need. Our hope begins with remembering.
The psalmist waits for the Lord because the psalmist remembers God’s hesed, God’s steadfast and faithful love. Because God’s love is faithful, we have hope. Our hope is greater than those who sit in the darkness waiting for the morning sun. “O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord, there is hesed, steadfast love.”
When you feel in the depths of fear and sorrow, cry unto God. As you wait, remember God’s faithful, steadfast love in your life. Your hope will be greater than those who watch for the morning.
Greg Smith is the Pastor at Scott Boulevard Baptist Church and moving into the role as Director of the Legacy Ministry at First Baptist Decatur. Greg has served as Pastor of Scott Boulevard since 2007. He earned two degrees from McAfee School of Theology of Mercer University. He and his wife Jan have two adult sons who live too far away, and two of the world’s greatest grandsons! Greg loves to feed deer in his backyard, which may explain why there are no outdoor flowers at their home. He has also served since 2005 as Chaplain of King’s Bridge Retirement Center in Atlanta.