Wednesday, November 23, 2022 – Advent One
“And so, Lord,
where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.” (Psalm 39:7, New Living Translation)
I might even argue that hope makes us human. Other species have innate needs
and wants which they seek to fulfill – food, shelter, safety. Some animals and birds
have limited forms of intelligence and comprehension. Some use tools of a kind
and exhibit certain motor skills. But only humans display conscious hope, the
unique ability to seek a future and believe ardently for the best of outcomes.
Hope, not opposable thumbs,
defines humankind, the sons of Adam and the daughters of Eve.
We always begin the season of
Advent in hope.
We hope that the war in Ukraine is
soon over. We hope that Covid will finally pass. We hope that that violent
shootings will cease. We hope that they will find a cure for cancer. We hope
that we can solve the crisis of climate change before it is too late. We hope that
poverty and homelessness disappear. We hope that our lives will find meaning
and purpose. We hope that our families remain healthy and secure and whole. We hope that
through whatever we are facing and dealing with we will find the strength,
wisdom and support that breaks through the clouds and shadows.
We are a people who can articulate
and specify hope and its value and its contents. We put real words to our hope.
We put faith into our hope. We put our trust in hope. We persist in hope.
Hope presents itself as a shield
to fend off our worries, anxieties, fears and hurts. Hope abides and lifts the
human spirit, soul and heart so that both alone and together we face the future.
But hope also is gifted to us in
the coming of the Messiah, always a figure of hope, possibility, liberation, rescue
and new life. “God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to
point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to
put the world right again.” (John 3:17, The Message Bible)
Not condemnation – that would be a thin hope indeed. There may be judgment, as some believe, but it
will be a justice of love, a desire for life sentences in a redemptive way, a
proclivity towards compassion and mercy. A spirit of forgiveness and healing.
“God isn’t late with his promise as some measure lateness. He is restraining
himself on account of you, holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone
lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change.” (2 Peter 3: 9, The Message)
At least I hope so.
Hope is our grasp of God’s future, understanding that it is also
humanity’s best option. Hope in God and his Messiah gives us strength, courage,
resolve, inspiration and assurance. Christian
Hope invites us to stretch our reach into God’s new territory of life and
rebirth. Hope is a summons to follow the
One who leads to a more wholesome, vibrant, life-sustaining way of thinking, believing,
sharing, loving and inevitably takes on us the road to joy and peace.
“We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in
the wide-open spaces of God’s grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our
praise.” (Romans 1:2, The Message)
May you find hope this Advent season.
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