Advent 2019: Day Six

Today's offering comes courtesy of Julie McLaughlin. Thanks, Julie!

A Thrill of Hope

Can you remember the time when you first began to anticipate the joy of the holiday season?  Being good Americans, I’m certain your first memories include things like cartoon Peanuts specials, promises of seeing reindeer, and awkward shopping mall Santas. 

Can you recall when you were committed to niceness over naughtiness, for nearly an entire month?  How about combing Toys 'R Us catalogs (or Sears or Children’s Palace, for you much older folks) and being enticed by oodles of the most fantastic advertising, promising that Santa could fulfill your gift request, there?

Do you remember the difficulty falling asleep, once you were hip to the Santa scene?  The television newscasters played along, giving “special reports” of Santa being on his way.  The younger folks among us have fond memories of searching the net to track his progress on NORAD.  It was happening!  Santa was on the move!  

Ah, the magic of that benevolent, portly, red-suited dude!  He could fly!  He was like Spider-Man, with his chimney skills!  He was so close by, even eating the cookies left for him (and leaving crumbs, you know, for proof)!  In exchange, he left you something new, something just for you.  It was so amazing!

Do you remember getting up at the butt-crack of dawn, anxiously anticipating the fulfillment of the commercial and cartoon promises?  Bleary-eyed grown ups jauntily saunter their way downstairs, excited to see the anticipated joy fulfilled.  With only two hours of sleep and a large cup of coffee, they wouldn’t choose to be anywhere else.  This. These are the moments they live to share with their beloveds. 

Consider, for a moment, a God who cannot wait to interact with you and your greatest desires.  Allow yourself to anticipate a new spiritual revelation, in this Advent season.  You will experience waiting.  You will experience restlessness.  You will experience a supernatural hope.  You will be left proof!  The God of the universe is stirring something new in relationship with you.  Love without condition, without strings attached!  There is nothing desired, more, than watching you experience the benefits and reality of the anticipated hope revealed!  It IS amazing! 

As the 1847 Adolphe Adam song of exclaimed:

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn;
Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel voices!
O night divine! O night when Christ was born.
O night, O holy night, O night divine.

May you be amazed with the thrill of hope, in the season and always. 

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