The Christmas season is here, and as we all know, the Christmas season can be full of wonder, fun, and excitement. However, every year there seems to be a new lesson, theme, or a new kind of something God seems to try and get my attention with. This year’s theme that the Lord keeps bringing up to me is hope.
Hope. What a wonderful word indeed!
According to the Bible Project*, two of the words for hope in the “ancient Hebrew language” are ‘yakhal’ and ‘qavah.’ These two words for hope take on the meaning of waiting – waiting with expectation, anticipation, and tension. According to the Bible Project, hope can also be defined as “anticipating a future that is better than the present.”
This, my friends, is what Christmas is all about. Christmas is the celebration of hope and that the wait is over! The wait is over for us to have hope to have a relationship with God again and to live forever in the presence of God one day. We are no longer waiting like the prophets and Jews did, who wondered if the Messiah would come during their lifetime! Jesus has already come, paid the ultimate price for you and me, and has taken on the sins of all who have lived and ever will live. We are set free because of Him, and our wait is over.
Because of Christmas, we can experience God’s true freedom, grace, peace, love, and joy right now.
However, even though the wait is over for our salvation, the wait is not over for those of us who have yet to pass on to the next life or for those of us who are still waiting for Christ’s return. I know firsthand how hard it can be to wait for this blessed day – “when all the dead in Christ shall rise” and we shall all be taken to Heaven to live with our Savior forever. I know it is hard, but I want to encourage you to keep waiting! Keep waiting well and keep being faithful to what God has called you to do right here in the now. Your labor is not in vain; it will be rewarded one day. You will reap a harvest if you do not give up! Keep waiting; your hope will come!
“An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.’” Luke 2:10-14
Alyssa Rasor
Magnified 
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