Give it Time

Turn it off and on again. 

If you leave it for 10 minutes it'll work.

Try it again it's a bit temperamental. 

I'll go and get "...." - they know how to make it work. 

How long do we wait until we try another way? 

Give it Time. 

Last night I had an appointment near Westminster Bridge that finished about 6pm. The worst time to travel. My journey home took me via Waterloo (which has now lost its status as the busiest station in London to Liverpool Street, but is still awful at 6pm on a week day evening). I had two choices - Jubilee Line change at Canary Wharf or Northern Line, change at Tottenham Court Road. I chose the first. 

On arrival at the platform I realised that I had chosen wrongly. The platform was full of people queuing for the doors (only on the Jubilee line do people form into a queue - a jubilee quirk). The train arrived, the queue went nowhere as noone was able to get off the train, it was an actual tin of sardines at the door I had chosen. I had a decision to make - do I wait for the next train which will inevitably be as disappointing or do I change route completely? I chose the second. 

A long walk with travelators to the other side of Waterloo Underground. The trains, still full, were better, and for a moment then I thought I had chosen wisely. I even got a seat after the first stop. On arrival at Tottenham Court Road the train emptied, and the inevitable bottle neck at the exit didn't clear before the next train came. Like a blocked drain, we shuffled our way up the stairs as a very brave (or foolish) man tried to swim against the tide and got stuck half way down the stairs. The crowd divided at the top of the stairs and with relief, I believed I had chosen wisely. Hoping that the next bit of the journey would be more pleasant (it was 7pm by now), I arrived at the Elizabeth Line platform, where there was a train (not mine) with the doors open. I looked up at the information screen and it had the eight letter mystery word on the screen "delayed". But for how long? 

The train at the platform closed it doors, and the platform breathed a synchronised sigh of relief. 

It didn't move. 

The group of friends behind me considered their actions. Do they wait and see what happens or do they try another way? Their animated discussion included an analysis of how long they would leave it before they turned back on themselves. As they discussed there was an announcement. "We're sorry for the delay, the train is having issues, but we'll be on our way soon". 

The people behind me estimated 4 minutes as the optimum time. The man to the left of me was repeating the announcement loudly either to himself or to the hidden phone in his beard. 

The people behind me left. 

The announcer began to announce again and was interrupted. Another announcer piped up. "The driver is currently resetting the train, it will be on its way shortly".

A woman comes up to the closed doors, pressing the button trying to get on. She signals to the people inside "can you open the door?". "Alas, no", their forlorn exasperated faces replied back. She stood, lost, not knowing what to do. The people on the train stared at the people on the platform and the people on the platform stared back. The man to my left repeated the announcement from earlier loudly. 

(And repeat the last two paragraphs x 2)

The train began to move. There was an inaudible cheer on the platform as people cheered in their heads, not wanting to interrupt the silence of the delayed rush hour crowd. 

The information board flashed "the next train doesn't stop here". The silent cheer turned into silent groans. The woman staring at the door willing it to open hoped that this meant the next train would be hers. 

Give it Time. 

How do you know when it is time to stop giving it time? There is a time to give it more time and a time to not. If I had persevered on my first chosen route would I have been home an hour earlier? Probably not, because the resetting train eventually caused major delays for everyone. 

In the waiting, how do we know when too much waiting is too much? 

In Luke 13 Jesus tells the story of a man who has a vineyard where there is a fig tree that is not producing fruit. For three years the owner has seen no fruit. He asks the one who looks after the vineyard, what should he do? 

The man says "give it one more year", give it time. Look after it, nurture it, fertilise it, and then let's see next year, and if it doesn't provide fruit, we'll think again.

There is a time to give it more time, and there is a time to not. Maybe sometimes the waiting is about making time to find or even create the right solution, the right way ahead, the way that will provide an answer next time. Advent waiting gives us hope in the delay. 

Give it time, listen for the announcements and ask for advice from those who know a little bit more. 

There is a time to give it more time and a time to not. 

There is a time to nurture and a time to cut down. 

There is a time to give up and a time to reset. 

There is a time to wait and a time to say now is the time. 

May God give you peace in the waiting and the knowledge to know the time in the now. 

I made it home.