Watching and Waiting

2 Kings 6:8-19

Introduction

Last week, we looked at the concept of waiting, especially within the concept of Advent. Very closely connected to that is the concept of watching. In fact we often use those two words together, “watching and waiting.” We can wait for something that we do not think will happen but if we have any hope, we will be actively watching for that for which we wait.

I can share an example from my own life, one that was difficult in many ways. When we lived in Ontario, our oldest children with autism lived in a group home 1.5 hours away. We experimented with a number of options with how to make this work. The group home was willing to do some but not all of the driving. One of the ways that we tried was we would each drive half way, approximately forty-five minutes to do the hand over of our kids. I was told what their van looked like and so after our home visit, I took Logan and Abby to the meet up spot, which was a large Tim Horton’s at the side of the highway. As I pulled up, I saw a van very much like what was described to me and so I parked and got the children out of our vehicle. Except it was not the van we were waiting for. Our children do not do well with changes in expectations and so this led to some tense moments. I tried to bring them back to our vehicle but that was not working, because they expected to be going right from our vehicle to their van. But the van was not there. So I stood in the parking lot with two very agitated autistic teens who just wanted things to go according to plan. I not only waited, I watched. If ever someone could will something into existing just be the intensity of watching, I would have made that happen. I do not know how long I waited and watched, it seemed like forever, but the van I was watching for arrived and everything worked out.

Are you watching for something. I understand that it can be difficult to separate between waiting and watching. Waiting has a vagueness to it, while watching is looking for specific things that will tell you that the thing that you are waiting for is about to arrive. Waiting would be hearing that a storm is coming and preparing yourself for it to come, whenever it comes. Watching would be looking out the window and seeing the clouds gather and darken, and anticipating its imminent arrival.

Such things are spoken of in the Scriptures as well. Let us look to an example from the Old Testament as we seek to understand what Advent watching looks like.

Watch This!

The passage that we are looking at takes place at a time when Israel was in conflict with Aram, which is modern day Syria. The king of Aram had been attempting to ambush the Israelites but there was one problem, Israel had a prophet. This was Elisha, who had been a disciple of Elijah. Elisha had a nasty habit of getting visions of where the Aramean troops were and allowing the Israelites to avoid them. This did not make the king happy and he was informed that Elisha was behind his troubles. So he decided it was time for some payback. Aramean troops were sent where Elisha was to take care of this troublemaker. Surprisingly, Elisha didn’t use prophecy to avoid this situation. Actually, Elisha wanted to be there this time because God had some other plans. Seeing that they were surrounded by enemy troops, Elisha’s servant was reasonably concerned. He asked: ‘Alas, master! What shall we do?’ Now, Elisha knew that God had a plan and together they could just wait for that plan to unfold. Waiting was an option but so was watching. So, Elisha prayed this prayer: ‘O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.’ What the servant saw was that there actually were an angelic army there to protect Elisha.  Seeing this was not the conclusion of the story but seeing this sight was part of the confidence that God would save them. There is some irony here in that Elisha prayed that the eyes of his servant would be open but the punishment of the Aramean army was to have their sight taken away. Elisha had to lead them to Samaria, which is kind of funny.

The point is that the servant understood that they were in a difficult situation and Elisha basically told him to watch and see what God was doing. God was at work even before this vision, but the servant needed to watch to see the sign that the time had come.

Watching for Jesus

We see this concept in the Christmas story, especially that of the wise men from the Gospel of Matthew. There were many who knew that that a Messiah was coming, for they had read and studied the prophecies in the Old Testament. They were waiting, but were they watching? Yes, some were watching. Some of these included the wise men and the sign that they saw was not an angelic army but rather a star. They were watching for something and when they saw the sign, they acted on it by travelling to Bethlehem to see the child who would be King of the Jews. And this is the key that I want you hear. Watching brings us to a moment of crisis. What happens when we see that which we have been watching for. When I saw that van in Ontario, I brought my children to it. When the servant saw the angelic army, he ceased to panic. When the wise men saw the star, they began a journey.

Watching for What God is Doing

I am someone who loves to plan, both for my own life and for church ministry. I have plenty of ideas. They are not always good but there is no lack of them. One way to go about life, both personally and in the context of church ministry, is to come up with some good ideas and then follow them through to their conclusion. This is something that is very attractive to me.

And yet I once heard some counsel that completely changed how I look at these plans. I was told to watch for what God is already doing and join in with that. Watch for what God is doing and join in with that. That is difficult because there are forces working against this impulse. What happens if what God is doing around us is different than what we are used to or what we are comfortable with? The early church experienced this in a painful way. Gentiles could only enter the church by converting to Judaism first. But then God accepted Cornelius as he was. This was the watching moment in which the church had to decide how to respond. For some, they watched what God was doing and joined in. For others, they did not like what they saw and fought against it.

I have two questions for you. What is God doing in your life and what is God doing in our church’s life? But to answer those questions, we have to watch. We might have to watch for some time, but we also have to believe that God is already at work and we just need to watch for the sign.

Conclusion

One of the things that I have always wanted to see is the Northern Lights. I am totally willing to travel to see them. But then the Northern Lights came this far south and many people in our area saw them. So I would go out at night and watch for the lights. I still have not seen them. I always just miss them. But I will keep watching. I want to see those lights and I will only see them if I watch for them. Staying in the living room and watching television will not make it happen.

The servant of Elisha was anxious, as we all would be, and Elisha told him to watch. The wise men watched for the signs and they responded. 

Are you watching? The same God who has been at work in all of these examples is at work here among us. We might be waiting a while, as we saw last week, but we must continue to be watchful. See what God is doing and get on board with that.