What is advent, but a time to wait for that which we hoped for. Scripture tells us that Mary of Nazareth was expecting the promised Messiah, the Christ who would come and be our savior. And with that promise, came hope. Hope for a nation, hope for us.

Hope is defined as “a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.” It is also “a feeling of trust.” Words like desire, wish, goal and aspiration all describe hope. “I hope I get the job I applied for.” “I wish there was peace in our world.” “My goal is to run the marathon.” Sound familiar? As people of faith, we have many hopes. We hope we can serve and make other’s lives better. We hope (trust) that God is always present. We hope that obstacles that sometimes prevent us from moving on, disappear.

When Christ was born, the wise men followed a star hoping to meet the savior. And indeed they did. Their hope was realized! May we like them, journey this advent with our hopes, believing that He will meet us and fulfill them in us.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” – Romans 15:13

Sandy Diaz