No doubt about it: Christmas is going to look different this year. Some folks (like me) will opt to scale back the decorating. Church and school programs won’t be presented, parades won’t be processing down Main Street, and fewer families will be cozied up at Grandma’s house for gift giving and feasting.
As if mocking the disappointment already rooting in our spirits, Andy Williams comes on the radio singing, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”—about friends coming to call, parties for hosting, and caroling out in the snow.
But wait. Perhaps this year could become a different kind of wonderful. Perhaps with less holiday preparation to complete and fewer activities to attend, we’ll have more time to revel in the preparation of our hearts.
How might we do that? According to pastor/author Handel H. Brown:
An attitude of expectancy includes an outlook of hope—hope in God’s provision for the here and now, and hope for what is to come. Even as we celebrate Christ’s first appearance on earth, we look forward to his second coming when he will “take us to heaven, to live with him there” (1).
Too often I’ve counted down the days until the Christmas tree is glowing, or the family is gathered, or the gift-exchange can finally take place. Those are all superb delights, but they quickly fade into wisps of memory.
We Christians can revel with expectant hope in a countdown of more substantive delight and importance. Peter called it a living hope, based as it is on our living Savior (1 Peter 1:3).
This hope is not just a feeling that fades like the euphoria of Christmas—once family members have departed and decorations are boxed and shelved. No, this hope is absolute certainty, placed in our faithful, eternal God . Everything he has promised he will deliver.
So how do we muster expectant hope? By immersing ourselves in God’s Word.
Hope is living constantly, patiently,
expectantly, resiliently, joyously
in the word of God.
–William Stringfellow
Here’s one scripture that fills me with expectant hope. See if these words don’t lift your spirit as well:
“Let us give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! Because of his great mercy he gave us new life by raising Jesus Christ from death.
“This fills us with a living hope, and so we look forward to possessing the rich blessings that God keeps for his people. He keeps them for you in heaven, where they cannot decay or spoil or fade away.
“They are for you, who through faith are kept safe by God’s power for the salvation which is ready to be revealed at the end of time”–1 Peter 1:3-5 GNT (2).
Praise God for his mercy!
Praise him for the new and abundant life he provides!
Praise him for all the blessings of past, present, and future!
Praise him for the perfected life yet to come–with him in heaven!
As we prepare our hearts for Christmas by immersing ourselves in such scriptures, expectant hope is bound to well up and produce wonderful results.
In addition:
“Expectancy is the atmosphere for miracles.”
–Unknown
So let’s put the WONDERFUL into Christmas 2020 with renewed, expectant hope in our glorious Father.
Let’s create the atmosphere for miracles!
What scripture fills your spirit with expectant hope? Please share in the comment section below!
Notes:
- The last line from “Away in the Manger,” based on John 14:2-3.
- Other scripture passages to explore that foster expectant hope: a) Isaiah 9:6-7 (See also a previous post, “His Name Shall Be Called.”) b) Isaiah 40:28-31, c) Ephesians 1:3-13, d) 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18.
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From the Inside Out 