The National Anthem of the United States of America is “The Star Spangled Banner.” Yet while this song about the perseverance of a piece of cloth (for we have no human to revere in our great land) still tugs on our patriotic heartstrings from time to time, perhaps the real anthem of the modern America is a rock song by Queen:
I want it all. I want it all. I want it all. And I want it now.
This anthem is what drives the American spirit. Just walk into any Sam’s Club or Wal-Mart where you can literally have it all, and have it now, if you only have access to enough credit.
I want it all. I want it all. I want it all. And I want it now.
How did we get here? We are a country that was built on the backs of hard work and perseverance. How did we become so lazy, impatient, and averse to suffering? How did we get to the point that we truly believe that everything is our due, and we owe absolutely nothing for it?
I want it all. I want it all. I want it all. And I want it now.
No, this is more than our anthem. This is our litany, our national prayer, our creed. We name it, and we claim it. We shouldn’t have to wait, we shouldn’t have to save or do without, and we shouldn’t have to pay for it.
I want it all. I want it all. I want it all. And I want it now.
There could be nothing farther from the ethos of the scripture than this litany of consumerism, this patriotic anthem of acquisition, this creed of impatience, pride, and gluttony. The bible says, wait, be patient, and suffer. That’s actually what the bible says! Wait, be patient, and suffer. What could be farther from our cultural norm? Yet we see in Mark 8:31-38 that though Christ was God incarnate, omnipotent and omniscient, and he certainly could have taken the rule of the entire earth, for he certainly had the power,yet he didn’t! He waited, he was patient, and he suffered.
And yet even after he waited, faithfully passed the tests, was patient, and suffered for his bride, he still does not have the fullness of worldly power. Why? Why did he not at least then, after he waited so long and suffered so much, did he not then take what was due him? Why? Because he also wanted glory for his people, his bride, and the only way to real glory is to wait, to be patient, and to suffer. So we must wait, be patient, and suffer, though we are anointed priests, kings, and prophets to the world, we must wait, be patient and suffer for the life of the world just as our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ did.
We must wait, be patient, and suffer.
Vita pastoralis 