Hurry Up and Wait

Coordinating a move is full of juxtapositions. It’s taking a couple of months to occur, but folks in the real estate business says this entire process is happening pretty fast and things are going smoothly. We need to be packing boxes, but there are things that we still need to use before the move so there are many things that we should wait to pack. I called the insurance company and set up insurance on the new house for the move-in date, but they won’t let me schedule stopping insurance on the old house until seven days or less before the changeover—and actually suggest that I contact them up to seven days after the move, in case something goes awry.

And that’s the kicker—we’re not inspecting the repairs on the new house until three days before closing. That doesn’t give us a lot of time if there are any things that aren’t fixed to our satisfaction. On the other hand, we want to give them time to do it right, and Thanksgiving occurred smack in the middle of it all.

So it’s “hurry up and wait.” We think we have plenty of boxes, but we won’t really know until we’re packing up the kitchen and bathroom the day before the movers come. I can pack some portions of my office, but others need to remain available to me until I’m finished working in this location. I can dig up the dead tomato plants in the garden, but won’t harvest any iris until the last minute because I want them to remain as fresh as possible before planting them in their new home. Today I can pack up the art in our meeting room, the books I kept out for reference during the prayer class I hosted, and most of the gardening tools. But other things must wait.

Advent is also about “hurry up and wait.” All around us, advertisers admonish us to hurry up and purchase Christmas gifts while they’re on sale, while in church we are admonished to slow down and wait, keeping watch for the coming of Christ. The juxtaposition can cause us spiritual whiplash if we’re not centered and grounded in God’s ever-present love. Jesus may be coming, but Christ is already with us, each and every day. So take some time to wait, but be aware—at the same time—that the present moment is a gift that’s already given.

What can you do today? What needs to wait?