Friday Five: Waiting

From Sally at RevGalBlogPals:

Part of the Ascension Day Scripture from Acts 11 contains this promise from
Jesus; "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and
you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends
of the earth.”
Then he was taken from their sight into the clouds, two
angels appeared and instructed the probably bewildered disciples to go back to
Jerusalem, where they began to wait and to pray for the gift Jesus had promised.
Prayer is a joy to some of us, and a chore to others, waiting likewise can
be filled with anticipation or anxiety....So how do you wait and pray?

1. How do you pray best, alone or with others?
Alone. As a pastor, of course, I do a lot of praying with others, but when it comes to prayer for just me and God, I feel most connected, most ‘in conversation’ when it’s just me and God. But I’ve been struggling with prayer lately, so perhaps I should be seeking out others with whom I can pray.
2. Do you enjoy the discipline of waiting, is it a time of anticipation or anxiety?
I. DESPISE. WAITING. Hate it hate it hate it. I’m not anxious, necessarily – I just want what I want NOW, which explains our terrible credit card debt, the lovely 2007 VW Jetta that I love and can’t afford (and can’t sell at the moment – anyone need a great German car?), and many, many other problems.
3. Is there a time when you have waited upon God for a specific promise?
Yes – in the healing time after my divorce. I knew that in time I’d be able to get through a day without thinking of and dwelling on the divorce, and that I just needed to trust and wait until it happened. Eventually, it did. In his video about forgiveness, Rob Bell says that true forgiveness is when you start wishing your enemy health and wellness and joy – thanks to waiting for God to help me forgive, I know how that works, and agree with him wholeheartedly.
4. Do you prefer stillness or action?
Oh, action, definitely. Why wait when you can do something? (Even if the something in question won’t help at all, at least you’re doing something!). Case in point: I’ve been known to take non-freeway routes to destinations in major cities to avoid sitting still in rush hour traffic. I don’t care if it actually takes longer and means more miles; if I can avoid sitting behind the wheel doing nothing, I’ll go farther and longer just to keep moving forward.
5. If ( and this is slightly tongue in cheek) you were promised one gift spiritual or otherwise what would you choose to recieve?
Patience, without a doubt. I just don’t have much of it at all. And I’d like it now, please. :-)