The Lenten Wisdom of Willy Wonka

 “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.” Ps. 130:5

I cannot believe Lent has already begun.  Lent, it is known as a season of waiting.  We wait with eager expectation for Easter morning, the day our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the grave.  Though waiting for this day is, well, a bit easy isn’t it?  It is easy because we know the outcome.  We know that through the waiting there will be great celebration!

Let’s think about that for a moment because I know I need too.  Waiting for this day is easy, because we know the outcome.  But what about waiting for other things in life?  I know I am waiting for some things, and I bet you are too.  I often wonder if God has not called us to the same easy, expectant, and hopeful—wait.  Easier said than done though isn’t it, I mean really, who likes to wait!  Remember Veruca Salt from the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory?   She sings a song titled, “I Want it Now.”  I wonder how often we sing the same song of Veruca Salt?  (Of course if we have seen the movie we know what happens to Veruca now don’t we?)

I marvel at the psalmist who pens, “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.”  The Hebrew word for hope here can also mean and is translated elsewhere as ‘wait.’  Try reading it again now with the word wait, “…in his word I put my wait.”  We can have an easy, expectant, and hopeful—wait.  It comes through meditating on the Word, because when we get to know the Word, we get to know God.  The more we know God, the more we learn trust Him.  Is not that what it is all about, learning to trust Him?  That’s when waiting can become easy (or maybe easier if you’re a little slow like meJ).