December 2, 2024

In the first week of Advent, we are called to prepare our hearts with Hope.

When we suffer great losses and are weighed down with grief and sorrow, how can our hearts be filled with hope?

The true anchor for our souls is Jesus. There is peace in His presence!

When we belong to Jesus, we can lean on Him. Being aware of Jesus’ presence with us keeps us from becoming discouraged or giving up. So, when we sense discouragement, we need to stop and consider our focus. Are we focusing on our problems or discouragement? If so, we need to consciously direct our attention to our all powerful Savior, Jesus Christ!

Putting our focus and faith on Jesus assures us that our hope is truly anchored (1 John 5:4). As we put our trust in Him, we can confidently expect that He will fulfill His promises to us of a “hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). 

The real truth is that as we walk through life with Him, He is always available to impart His power to us moment by moment. He is our Rock on which we can keep standing, our “anchor to windward”.

During this first week of Advent, we need to ask ourselves what we are putting our hope in. We need to thank the God of Hope for sending Jesus to us on that first Christmas, and if we have accepted His gift of salvation, the question we need to ask is, will we keep our focus on Him and allow Him to fill us with His joy and peace? If we can, we’ll experience an overflow of confidence and a genuine hope provided by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13)!