Waiting and Broken Dreams
I’ve been here in Minneapolis teaching and leading worship at Source's Urban Ministry Training. I have been speaking on and continue to meditate on expecting new things from God because he is the Creator. In the Psalms, the word “expect” appears many times but most translations of the Bible give us the word “wait.”
Psalm 37 gives us some insight:
Verse 7:
Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him…
Verse 9:
…those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land…
Verse 11:
…the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace…
Verse 22:
…those the LORD blesses will inherit the land…
Verse 29:
…the righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever…
Verse 34:
Wait for the LORD and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land…
Our inheritance is eternal life and the Kingdom of God. My work and what I long for is the restoration of the Kingdom, the restored family of God. And here, I see my work is utterly dependent on waiting. This is so counter-cultural to how the world operates. In the world, if our dreams have financial holes, we get a loan from the bank. If there is a lack of people, we are applauded for doing the work of three. I know both of those scenarios all to well. I am encouraged though, as I reconsider my own dreams and visions through this Kingdom lens. “Those the Lord blesses” are the ones who wait.
Broken Dreams…
Because I am a broken person in such great need of God, my dreams are probably broken too. But, just as God uses us and loves us in our brokenness, he can use our pieces of dreams too. I think the key though, is waiting and expecting God to bring the wholeness and not our own skill or administration (again, raising my own hand as the guilty one)...
In my last entry, I wrote about what I see God doing and my expectation of a new work in this generation restoring relationships and the family of God. It is a dream and vision. I also realize though, that it is dependent on generational partnership. It makes sense since we need each other and we are a family.
Here in Minneapolis there is a large community of young artistic people and many impassioned believers. It really is incredible. The unique expression I wrote about before, I see very clearly here. Many young people are moving from rural areas to be here with peers and their dreams are synergized together. Young people often attract more young people. Many my age gather with peers and try to do community. At first I come into these circles and am so excited about all of the love and energy that genuinely exists. But then I notice the residue of of being misunderstood and a deeper longing for family.
We know many of the reasons. Many of us have been hurt and deeply misunderstood and a relationship with an older generation do not feel safe. Some of us really long for mentors and spiritual mother’s and father’s but don’t know how that works. And, there is a lack of mothers and fathers both in the world and in the Church. Our intergenerational connectedness at this particular time is pretty broken all around.
So what do we do? Do we push forward anyway being our own mothers and fathers? Do we force people different from us to be like us so that we feel comfortable relating? Or do we wait? And what are we waiting for? I would say, perhaps we are waiting for the power of God to restore His family. Waiting is an act of faith; we must believe that God can change entire generations and reconcile them. We expect. Waiting does not diminish our dreams; waiting is how they manifest.
Worship is Key…
We don’t have to have all of the answers, but waiting together is probably good. Praying together is probably good. Worshiping together is a necessity. Worshiping together, becomes an act of reconciliation. I think about all of the times I have worshipped in different cultures. Sometimes the music was amazing and sometimes it, well, wasn’t my favorite…but that says nothing of the power of the worship. The opportunity to come together and be in the presence of God together is a fulfillment of the scriptures that we are, “a Holy Nation” (2 Peter). Why can we go to Mexico, not understand the words, clap on different beats, and still leave feeling like we’ve had a powerful worship experience? I think it’s because being connected is incredibly powerful. Why is it not the same in people’s hearts when it comes to different expressions that come out of different communities and generations in this country?
Wait
Expect
Hope
Pray
Wait
Psalm 37 gives us some insight:
Verse 7:
Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him…
Verse 9:
…those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land…
Verse 11:
…the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace…
Verse 22:
…those the LORD blesses will inherit the land…
Verse 29:
…the righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever…
Verse 34:
Wait for the LORD and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land…
Our inheritance is eternal life and the Kingdom of God. My work and what I long for is the restoration of the Kingdom, the restored family of God. And here, I see my work is utterly dependent on waiting. This is so counter-cultural to how the world operates. In the world, if our dreams have financial holes, we get a loan from the bank. If there is a lack of people, we are applauded for doing the work of three. I know both of those scenarios all to well. I am encouraged though, as I reconsider my own dreams and visions through this Kingdom lens. “Those the Lord blesses” are the ones who wait.
Broken Dreams…
Because I am a broken person in such great need of God, my dreams are probably broken too. But, just as God uses us and loves us in our brokenness, he can use our pieces of dreams too. I think the key though, is waiting and expecting God to bring the wholeness and not our own skill or administration (again, raising my own hand as the guilty one)...
In my last entry, I wrote about what I see God doing and my expectation of a new work in this generation restoring relationships and the family of God. It is a dream and vision. I also realize though, that it is dependent on generational partnership. It makes sense since we need each other and we are a family.
Here in Minneapolis there is a large community of young artistic people and many impassioned believers. It really is incredible. The unique expression I wrote about before, I see very clearly here. Many young people are moving from rural areas to be here with peers and their dreams are synergized together. Young people often attract more young people. Many my age gather with peers and try to do community. At first I come into these circles and am so excited about all of the love and energy that genuinely exists. But then I notice the residue of of being misunderstood and a deeper longing for family.
We know many of the reasons. Many of us have been hurt and deeply misunderstood and a relationship with an older generation do not feel safe. Some of us really long for mentors and spiritual mother’s and father’s but don’t know how that works. And, there is a lack of mothers and fathers both in the world and in the Church. Our intergenerational connectedness at this particular time is pretty broken all around.
So what do we do? Do we push forward anyway being our own mothers and fathers? Do we force people different from us to be like us so that we feel comfortable relating? Or do we wait? And what are we waiting for? I would say, perhaps we are waiting for the power of God to restore His family. Waiting is an act of faith; we must believe that God can change entire generations and reconcile them. We expect. Waiting does not diminish our dreams; waiting is how they manifest.
Worship is Key…
We don’t have to have all of the answers, but waiting together is probably good. Praying together is probably good. Worshiping together is a necessity. Worshiping together, becomes an act of reconciliation. I think about all of the times I have worshipped in different cultures. Sometimes the music was amazing and sometimes it, well, wasn’t my favorite…but that says nothing of the power of the worship. The opportunity to come together and be in the presence of God together is a fulfillment of the scriptures that we are, “a Holy Nation” (2 Peter). Why can we go to Mexico, not understand the words, clap on different beats, and still leave feeling like we’ve had a powerful worship experience? I think it’s because being connected is incredibly powerful. Why is it not the same in people’s hearts when it comes to different expressions that come out of different communities and generations in this country?
Wait
Expect
Hope
Pray
Wait
posted by Tracy Howe at 4:04 PM
2 Comments:
This last entry is deeply moving to me. I'm trying this waiting thing myself....
Being a mentor, I imagine, is more than anything being there physically (and otherwise) for someone and I can't be there physically for the people you write about (I couldn't even make it to the twin cities for a cup of coffee!). But who you all are, where you are and where you're headed are very close to my heart. And as painfully lame as this sounds to me, I'm here, one older person who's waiting with you for God's time.
If God can use even our mistakes for His glory (one of the most astonishing things I've ever learned about God), how much more can He use pieces of our dreams? You're right on the mark there. Keep listening eloquently and waiting creatively.
I love it Tracy -- thanks for sharing your self like you do.
You're hitting on something I've heard a couple people talk about recently: that the Biblical meaning of the word we translate so often as "wait" is a very active word, while our use of it usually implies passivity.
I've been wondering about that in my head (always with a quirky smile) because I can't quite figure out what active "waiting" looks like. Maybe "expect" is a good start. I'd like to think there's something even more mysterious in it, like satyagraha meaning something-like-but-more-than "active nonviolence."
I think you've helped me think about it more... At least right now, I'm no longer imagining "active waiting" as a squirmy four year old boy needing a trip to the bathroom but he's been told to stand in a corner and wait.
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