A Time for Hope

Hope is the 1st Candle of Advent

Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible Hope

Hope. An expectation or belief in the fulfillment of something desired. Present hurts and uncertainty over what the future holds create the constant need for hope. Worldwide poverty, hunger, disease, and human potential to generate terror and destruction create a longing for something better. Historically people have looked to the future with a mixture of longing and fear. Many have concluded that there is no reasonable basis for hope and therefore to hope is to live with an illusion. Scripture relates being without hope to being in the world without God: “remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world” (Eph 2:12).

Old Testament Reading for 1st Sunday of Advent (Year C)

Jeremiah 33:14–16 ESV

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

Jeremiah

Consider how long before the Advent of Christ the Prophet Jeremiah penned those words of hoping and waiting. Approximately 600 years! And 400 of those years passed without any updates. (The years of Silence). Waiting for 2 days is difficult for us in the time of instant gratification, let alone waiting for 10 years!

The Advent Reading for Hope (GWU 2006)

Preparing ourselves to celebrate Christ’s coming is the first act of receiving Christ into our midst - we are joining ourselves with Israel’s psalmists and prophets, and with the church’s apostles and teachers, as we anticipate God’s redemption of the world. Will God deliver those who suffer, who are downtrodden, who stumble under the weight of sin and oppression? Advent assures us God will. Will all of creation finally be reconciled to God? Advent promises exactly that, even insisting that those of us who serve God can play a part in that reconciliation by becoming ‘ministers of reconciliation’ ourselves ()

Daniel Goodman, Chair of NT Interpretation, GWU school of Divinity

Prayer prompts for Preparation

What are you hoping for this Christmas season? The answer will vary from person to person based on circumstances, but consider what some people are hoping for in this current season:

An orphan in India is hoping to be adopted

A child in Afghanistan is hoping for an end to the violence

A Christian pastor in China is hoping for religious freedom

An islander in the Pacific Rim is hoping for a Bible in his own language

And in Alexander county an alcoholic is hoping for another fifth of whiskey, an addict is hoping for another fix, and a lot of children are hoping for family stability, and food to eat.

Praying in Hope

As we prepare to spend time in prayer, let us pray in hope. We can pray in hope because we serve a mighty God. We can pray in hope because our God is good.

; (read antiphonally)