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Friday, November 19, 2004
On my first trip to Holland in 2000, we were able to visit the home of Corrie Ten Boom. She's the author of a book, "The Hiding Place," which is her account of being a leader of the Dutch resistance during the Nazi occupation of The Netherlands during World War II.
The long and short of it is this: Her family built a faux wall on the upper floor of her home in which they could hide Jewish refugees. Corrie Ten Boom's faith spurred her actions of love for her Jewish friends...in which, once the Nazi's would enter her home, a system of warnings had already been issued, sending those on the run up the stairs, through a faux bookshelf, and then safely behind the fake wall.
And then those on the run would wait.
And wait.
And wait.
It could last up to three days before the occupants got the "all clear" signal.
Can you imagine what that would be like? Playing a game of hide-and-seek, and if you lose, it costs you your life? And not only you, but the people who are hiding you, and BOTH of your families?
Sitting behind a wall. In the dark. Not knowing if the all clear signal will come in 10 minutes or in 72 hours. Waiting. With your life in the balance.
That's what the psalmist is describing in Psalm 130 in verses 5 & 6: "I wait for the Lord, my soul does wait. And in His word do I hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than the watchman for the morning. Indeed, more than the watchman for the morning."
Note that these verses follow a vivid description of his soul in pain, crying out to God, and being glad that God's response doesn't hinge on how good he is.
He's asked the prayer...and now he waits.
We've all been there, haven't we? We've asked the prayer; we've talked with God; we've poured out our heart...and then we wait.
It's also helpful to mention where the author's hope lies: In the word of God. His hope isn't in hope itself (just wanting things to get better), or in some miraculous event, or some 11th hour salvation. Nope. His hope is in God's Word. The very breath of God.
And that Word of God very rarely describes a quick fix. Seems to me that there's a lot more of learning to persevere through trials and triblulations than there is about God fixing the problem you're having. But his hope is found in God's Word.
And he waits like the guard who has been at his post all night, never knowing what is around the corner, friend or foe, death or life, with a lot of responsibilities while on duty. He waits like that soldier waits for the morning, when his relief comes and he can get some rest.
Or like someone behind a wall trying to be quiet so the Nazis don't hear him.
And the Lord is his hope, too. The God who loves him faithfully, no matter what he's like. The Lord who will redeem him and his nation from all their iniquity.
Some of those behind the wall would get a special signal. One that, once given, would require that they exit the hiding place, ascend a flight of stairs, exit to the roof and then jump over a series of rooftops that would get them to a house at the end of the block.
From this house, they would get to another safe house, one with all sorts of legal documents that could get them out of the country. To safety. To freedom. In some ways equally scary because of the unknown trials and tribluations that would be inevitable in a wartime escape...but safety and freedom nonetheless.
And when you wait on the Lord, who is faithful and loyally loving, He will redeem. He will. One way or another, He will.
And that gives us hope. True hope, not some blind leap in the dark.
Which leads to freedom.
No matter what you're facing right now. Hope in the Lord and the promises of His word.
Brent 4:41 AM
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