Watching for Morning

LORD, if You considered sins, Lord, who could stand? But with You there is forgiveness, so that You may be revered. I wait for the LORD; I wait, and put my hope in His word. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning--more than watchmen for the morning. - Psalms 130:3-6 HCSB

A farmer wakes up his son and starts breakfast. As the eggs fry, he turns on the radio to hear the weather for the day and the price of corn. The day ahead will be full of work but he looks forward to the satisfaction that physical labor can bring.

A traveler’s alarm buzzes and he blearily staggers into the shower. After the stinging water washes away the night, he wanders out of the hotel bathroom while brushing his teeth. He hits the TV button on the way by, only half listening to the news while he peers through the curtains at the first glimmers of light. He needs to get his clothes and toiletries packed up quickly. There are a lot of miles to go.

A mother quickly and quietly gets herself ready in the semi darkness of a quiet house. The family dog’s tail thumps the floor as she hears her mistress moving about, knowing that she will soon get to go outside. The washer is emptied into the dryer and the mother begins to set out clothes for her children to wear to school that day. Already she is planning both lunch and supper while a million other things that she must track for her family tick through her mind like the world’s longest chore list.

A criminal sits despondently in his cell, his eyes focused on the small bit of sky his cell’s window provides. As the first rays of dawn creep across the sky, he is both attracted and repelled because they signal his last day on earth. This is the last time he will ever be able to absorb their beauty and his mind drinks in every detail while simultaneously dreading the sound of footsteps outside his door.

Each of these people watch for the morning; some with anticipation; others with fear and dread. Day after day, for thousands of years, God’s people have anticipated each morning, wondering, “Is this perhaps the day? Will the Messiah return today?”

Some consider each day a gift; an opportunity; another chance to worship God through service and hard work. Others dread each day, anticipating only the endless rat race of useless human endeavor.

The key to hope lies in this passage. Those who acknowledge their sinful state and utter helplessness without the forgiveness of God will find hope; not only for the Messiah’s return, but for the beauties and opportunities of each day.

Those who cannot humble themselves enough to acknowledge the truth of their sin’s conviction can only fear the sound of the footsteps of their coming God.[1]

[1] Genesis 3:10