Cells, Waiting and the Birth of Christ

It’s hard to wait, especially when you know something exciting and life-changing is just around the corner. Last year, my husband and I welcomed our first baby. We couldn’t wait for his arrival, and so we were thrilled when he decided to come a little early. In the words from a Tennessee William’s play, “He (was) the long-delayed but always expected something that we (were) living for,” at least for nine months. We did our best to prepare for his arrival by enrolling in birthing classes, packing a hospital bag, and decorating the nursery, among other things. We preoccupied ourselves as much as we could but, even so, grew more impatient as the days went on.

Because I was so focused on his arrival and, with my mind full of questions like, “Who will he look like? What will his personality be like? What will it feel like to hold him?” it was hard to celebrate each developmental milestone. Furthermore, the loss of a previous pregnancy had taught us to wait with more caution than hope, causing us to at times doubt whether we would ever hold him.

However, in the end, the wait, while lengthy and often uncomfortable, was all worth it the moment he arrived. The end of our waiting marked the beginning of a new adventure, and the moment our lives were forever changed.

Cells, birth and waiting

A cell’s life, much like our own, is characterized by moments of excitement and action and moments of monotony and waiting. Like birth heralds our grand entrance into the world, cell division, specifically cytokinesis (the physical separation of one cell into two new ones), marks the beginning in the life of a cell. Most normal healthy cells have a finite lifespan, dividing a limited number of times before they can no longer do so and eventually die. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule; for example, many cancerous cells have acquired mutations that make them immortal, allowing them to divide indefinitely.

An actively dividing cell actually spends the majority of its life in a period of waiting and preparation called “interphase,” where it is getting ready to divide. During this time a cell grows, builds all the necessary machinery it will need to divide, and replicates its DNA—the genetic material it needs to distribute to each daughter cell. In this context, waiting is purposeful. It is more than a preoccupation with busyness to pass time. It provides an opportunity for preparation that promotes the fidelity of the process and ultimately safeguards the well-being of the entire organism.

Without proper preparation, a cell could attempt to divide prematurely, and drastic consequences can result. For example, a cell may fail to divide altogether or may divide only to produce abnormal cells. To protect against this, cells are programmed with a series of checkpoints to pause and evaluate if everything is on track, before proceeding and ultimately giving the green light to divide. While it’s debatable as to whether cells find joy in the process of waiting, they certainly aren’t complaining, and the process is what makes the outcome even possible.

Hope for a weary and waiting world

As a first-time parent, I find myself connecting with the story of Christ’s birth in a different way. It’s a story all about waiting. Parents waiting for their baby to reach every developmental milestone and reach full term before welcoming him into the world. Perhaps even wondering if they will ever hold their child. All of creation waiting for the arrival of the long-promised and prophesied Savior who would bring hope to a weary and anxiously waiting world.

But hope deferred makes the heart sick. I can only imagine hearing of a promise that I would never see in my own lifetime—and only hoping for it to be true—or waiting impatiently, not knowing how close I was to one of the most exciting and life-changing events in human history. Generations of Israelites awaited the promise of the Messiah. A long history of waiting preceeded his arrival. From Moses guiding the Israelites to a Promised Land that not everyone reached, to Abram and Sarai being promised a star-studded night sky’s worth of descendants they never saw. But each promise prophesied brought humanity closer to the ultimate fulfillment.

A longing fulfilled is a tree of life. The moment Jesus Christ arrived our world was forever changed. His birth gave purpose to the generations that had waited and paved the way for him and renewed hope and life to those who would come long after