We find ourselves in another season of Advent, a season when we as believers in Jesus Christ prepare our hearts and homes for the long awaited and expected Jesus. This waiting for Christmas Day to celebrate the birth of Christ might not seem much like waiting to us, since we already have the story of His arrival. We know the details, right? We walk the hot pavement of this earth after His coming and after the cross. We live on the timeline in history after His ascension back into Heaven. We now wait for His coming return.

Advent means coming, so it therefore also implies waiting. We wait for what it to come. As a child, we eagerly awaited Christmas morning, but probably for different reasons than to celebrate the birth of Jesus. We couldn’t wait to get our hands on those presents. I’ll be the first to admit my life-long struggle to possess and maintain patience. Waiting is hard. Waiting is often uncomfortable. We want what we want, and we want it now. Funny how the immature ways of a child on Christmas day so easily find ways to present themselves in us as adults today, isn’t it?

However, our waiting in this season of Advent that comes with expectation of what is to come, is not in vain. We not only have the promised Messiah, but we also have a risen King. He is not only a promise maker, but He is a promise keeper. He promised to return, and we await the fulfillment of that promise today.

Advent.

Christ is coming again. He will return for His own. Our hearts cry in the waiting, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” and friends, He will come! We have hope in the waiting of His promise to be fulfilled. There is a Redeemer, One who has come to set every captive free. There is a Savior, one who has come to bring peace and life. There is a King, one who has come to rule and reign in the hearts of all.

So, we have hope in the waiting of His return. Our hope is in who He was, who He is, and who He will be. Our hope is Jesus Christ, the King.

A prayer of hope for you to pray today:

Jesus, You are our Prince of Peace, so bring peace into our hearts again as we find ourselves in the waiting. Jesus, You are our Wonderful Counselor, our Mighty God, our Everlasting Father, so revive our hope, and give us a strong and confident expectation, an unwavering trust in the unchanging character of who You are. Our hope in the waiting is You, Jesus, and You are all that we need.

- Cherie Wagner, November Conference Speaker