Part 1

Hello ,

Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel… It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Luke 2:25-28

There’s a kind of waiting that feels like life is on pause. Days pass, prayers go up, but nothing seems to move. And if we’re honest, that kind of waiting can start to feel like silence… or even absence.

Simeon knew what it meant to wait—but not like that.

He had been given a promise. Clear. Personal. Certain. He would see the Messiah before he died. But what’s striking is not just the promise—it’s how he lived with it. Scripture doesn’t show a man striving, forcing, or trying to manufacture outcomes. It shows a man who remained devout… attentive… available.

There’s a story told of a man who planted an orchard. For years, there was no visible fruit. Season after season, just branches and leaves. People questioned why he kept tending trees that hadn’t produced anything yet. But he understood something they didn’t—growth was happening long before it could be seen. Roots were deepening. Structure was forming. The fruit was not absent… it was developing.

That’s the kind of waiting Simeon embodied.

He didn’t try to control the timing—he stayed aligned with the promise. And when the moment came, he didn’t miss it. The same Spirit that gave the promise prompted him to be in the right place at the right time. And there, in what looked like an ordinary moment—a young couple bringing a baby into the temple—Simeon recognized what others overlooked.

That’s what waiting on the Lord actually forms in you: discernment.

Not just patience. Not just endurance. But the ability to recognize when God is moving—even when it doesn’t look dramatic.

Because many people aren’t missing God’s promises—they’re missing His timing. They’re looking for something bigger, louder, more obvious. And in doing so, they overlook the quiet fulfillment right in front of them.

Waiting quietly on the Lord is not about doing nothing. It’s about staying positioned—spiritually awake, internally steady, and ready to respond when the moment arrives.

Simeon didn’t rush the promise. He didn’t abandon it either. He carried it… until he could hold it...and when he finally did, it didn’t come with spectacle. It came quietly, in his arms, exactly as God had said.

Musical Reflection: A Quiet Place

Have a great day and God Bless!

Pastor Mike / The Open Word