First off, happy new year! As Christians we begin a new year with the start of the Advent season. Advent is a time of preparing, a time of waiting, and a time of seeking. Each of the 4 Sundays in Advent is marked by a special word, or theme, and what better place to start that Hope.
‘But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father…Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.
Matthew 24:36 & 44
Super hopeful, right?
As I said, Advent is a season of waiting, and we hate doing that. We have our calendars, and odds are they are full by now, and we spend much of our time between now and Christmas running. That doesn’t leave much room for waiting. It doesn’t leave much room for anything really.
Therein lies the hopeful message. That if only we’d slow down for a moment, wait, and allow for the Holy Spirit to work in and through us, maybe, just maybe Christ will be born anew in our hearts and lives in ways we can’t understand or see because we are blinded by all that we’ve scheduled.
I do hope you enjoy this Advent Season, and hope also that you are busy spending time with family and friends. I will ask you to do this though: take a moment each day to welcome Christ into your heart. That way, maybe he’ll guide your feet to where you can truly be a blessing and gift to someone who needs it.
And in those quiet moments, may this prayer help center you:
Help me, O God, to be hopeful, so that I might bring hope to others.
Guide me O God, to be grace-filled, so that others might feel your grace too.
Lead me, O God, to the lonely, so that all your children feel your love.
Live, O God, within me, so that my feet carry me to where you would have me go, and my arms embrace all who feel lost.
Amen
May the Hope of this season fill you with light to dispel all darkness.
Rev. Richard