2 Peter 3:⁸ But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day.

Peter is writing to Christians who didn’t understand why Jesus had not returned in their lifetimes. It was said that Jesus was coming – any day. What was the holdup?! So Peter offered this verse to explain why the “Day of the Lord” was taking a lot longer than a day. I’m pretty sure the original readers would have freaked out to know that 2,000 years after this letter was written we would still be waiting.

But our God thinks in terms of eternity, not hours and days. A lifetime for us is like a tick of the clock in the context of eternity. I get the logic of it, but it’s not very satisfying. Particularly for those in Peter’s day who were waiting for the Lord to bring relief from struggle and hardship, waiting was very difficult. I realize whatever struggles I have pale in comparison to persecuted early Christians, but the waiting is still hard. But wait I must. Wait you must. Wait we must.

Lord Jesus we need you. We anxiously anticipate your return to bring an end to sin and death once and for all, to right the many injustices of our world, to bring relief to those who struggle. Give us grace. To wait. Amen.