We all get stuck sometimes.
One minute we are riding the wave, feeling like we are right where we are supposed to be, and the next, we’re lost.
Something shifts. And suddenly, we’re frozen - staring up at the sky, waiting for something significant to break through.
The followers of Jesus found themselves in just such a place after his departure. There they were standing on a hillside, having just witnessed Jesus’ resurrection and ascension into heaven, and now literally staring up at the sky. They were caught in a moment of both wonder and paralysis. It took angels to shake them loose:
“Why do you stand here looking up at an empty sky?”
As G.K. Chesterton, the witty turn-of-the-century apologist, wisely pointed out, true wonder shouldn’t leave us paralyzed; rather, it should inspire action. For wonder’s purpose is to launch us into intentional preparation for and inspire faithful commitment to what lies ahead.
Thankfully, after some prompting, the Disciples took the next steps:
“They agreed they were in this for good, completely together in prayer.”
They knew they were still a work in progress, for Jesus had told them something else was coming. Yet they didn’t wait passively; they now built community, aligned their goals, and prayed with purpose. Chesterton celebrates this ‘ordinary faithfulness’ or the quiet, consistent actions through which the extraordinary breaks into the everyday.
We are similarly charged to act when we are uncertain about the future. Maybe our "waiting" looks like building stronger relationships, serving where we are, deepening our prayer lives, or engaging the challenges of our communities rather than withdrawing. Maybe it means stepping forward in faith, doing what we can now, trusting God to meet us as we move.
Put simply: if we are stuck staring at the sky, waiting passively for God to move us, we might miss the moment He actually shows up—in our community, prayers, and preparation.
Maybe it is time to shift to a more active waiting. To pray. To gather. To prepare.
Doing so will ensure we are ready to move when the clouds finally part.