Advent Anticipation and Hope

Crown College

Advent is a time of anticipation and hope. It is not by accident that Advent begins the new church calendar each year. We begin that yearly cycle of remembering Christ’s life with the anticipation of his birth.

As we do so corporately as the Church, we also become aware individually of the ache in our hearts where we are waiting for God to move on our behalf. Each of us is waiting for one answer or another in our life. Sometimes that waiting is so long that we give up hope that an answer will ever come.

In many ways, we are challenged to wait like children often wait for the excitement of Christmas morning. They know something exciting is inside those beautifully wrapped packages. In like manner, we are called to wait with anticipation and expectation. This is a hopeful waiting. This is a joyful expectancy of something good—very good.

Of course, sometimes children are disappointed when they finally are free to rip open the colorful paper to see what they have been given. However, in the spiritual life we do not need to brace ourselves for disappointment. Jesus revealed God as a loving heavenly Father who delights in giving to his children. While we may not always receive what we thought we were getting, God’s gift is always good!

“O, taste and see that the Lord is good!” –Psalm 34:8

© 2013 Glenn E. Myers