We are in the first week of Advent, and the focus of this week is hope. This year I've felt very drawn to that line from the song "O Holy Night" "A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices." It just seems so, so relatable this year, don't you think? Our world is weary, worn down from the anxiety and turmoil and grief of this past year, longing and aching for things to improve. I'm sure all of us could use some hope.
I've been reading the book of Romans, and this week one of the verses caught my attention as it pertained to hope. Romans 5:3-5 says, "Not only that but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us."
Did you guys catch how hope is produced in us, where it originates from? It's from suffering. When we suffer, we develop endurance, which develops character, which develops hope. You could almost say that without suffering, we can't really have hope. A little later in Romans, we read some more about hope. Romans 8:24-25 says, "For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience." When everything is peachy-keen and happy, we don't really need hope; we don't hope for what we already have before us. But when things are at rock-bottom and we are struggling and hurting, we look ahead longingly to when things will be better; we hope! With the amount of suffering in our world right now, can you imagine the coordinating level of hope there is? How much more do we long for God's mercy, goodness, help, and deliverance than we have in earlier seasons?
I think our world needs hope so desperately right now. I know that I do! As God's people, filled with His love and Spirit, we can share hope with others around us who so desperately need it. I was actually on the receiving end of this just this last weekend at church. Sunday was a rough day for me this week because we were preparing for Jed's big work trip to Chicago the next day. I was dreading the thought of him leaving and felt overwhelmed at the prospect of parenting alone for almost 2 weeks. The thought that kept running through my mind was, "How am I ever going to do this, God?"
As I walked into church, a sweet friend came over and told me that God had laid me on her heart that morning, and she asked if I needed a hug. This simple gesture was such a blessing to me because it reminded me that God saw me, and He would provide what I needed in the upcoming season of parenting solo. It gave me "a thrill of hope" for a time that I was feeling a lot of anxiety and dread.
Just like my sweet friend did for me at church, we can each provide "a thrill of hope" to the people in our sphere of influence. As I close today, I want to leave you with a couple of questions that I hope will help you stay focused on hope in this first week of Advent.
1. What are some "thrills of hope" God has provided to you throughout the sufferings of this year?
2. How can you share a thrill of hope with those around you in your daily life?
