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What I didn’t fully realize at the time, since I was relatively new at that point, was that Sarah had some talks with my predecessors about joining. Thanks to me, she had to wait a little longer.
But that wait ended up being a good thing. Sarah was getting married shortly, and it was important to both of them to make this journey in life together in their faith as well. Sarah’s husband, we’ll call him Joe, had already been confirmed, but he went through Confirmation/Reception/Reaffirmation class with Sarah, and both of them were stronger for it.
As their life together grew, so did their faith. Both of them became greatly involved in our worship and the overall life of the parish.
I don’t know the full affect waiting had on Sarah, but because she waited her experience of the joy of Christ Jesus was all the fuller, especially since she had someone to share it with.
We don’t know the affect waiting had on Simeon and Anna, except for time and age, but we do know the joy they received when finally getting to see Jesus.
Jesus, in today’s Gospel, goes through His purification ceremony in the Temple. Simeon, a devoted and religious person in the Temple, had been told he would not die until he had seen the coming of the Messiah. One would hope such a person would keep his eyes and ears open in this time of waiting, and apparently he did. He listens to the Holy Spirit telling him that this child, the little Jesus, is, in fact, the one he has been waiting for. Simeon is so moved, that on the spot, according to Luke, he devises a poem expressing his joy at seeing his savior, a poem which those who are familiar with compline will no doubt recognize (albeit in a different form), and perhaps even know by heart.
Anna, on the other hand, is a prophet living in the Temple. She too is one who is waiting, ready, and listening to the words of the Spirit after many many years. She too hears what God is telling her about the little Jesus, and she too praises Jesus as the one who will redeem Jerusalem.
Waiting may have been hard on Simeon and Anna. That we do not know. What we do know is that they were rewarded for their time waiting with a glimpse of the Messiah, the one will be the Salvation of all.
Waiting can often be a difficult thing for us, especially when we are waiting to see what God has in store for us. This is the place where we are in Resurrection as we wait to see who will be the next rector of this church.
I cannot look into each and everyone of your hearts to see how you feel about this moment of waiting. I cannot promise that this time has been easy, or will even feel easy as we reach the end of that waiting period. What I can say from the story of Simeon and Anna at the presentation of our Lord in the Temple is that God does not disappoint. We may wait at many points of our life, but that waiting will be worth to see how God has made Himself manifest among us at the end of it all.
Wait without fear for the Lord, and be open to listen and see the presence of His salvation among us.