Seeking Hope as We Wait

 "My plan was to wake up as late as possible on Christmas eve so the day would be short and I wouldn't have to wait so long for Christmas..." That's what Dylan announced as he walked in the living room today at 11:30ish in the morning.  Looking at him, I noticed the spark in his eyes...it was a precious moment to me...a moment that made my heart smile...a moment that made me realize my 15-year-old son still has the wonder of Christmas living inside of him...and for that, I am most grateful.

Time is a funny thing.  It does not stop or wait for anyone or anything.  It just continues to tick away reminding us of our finite existence on this Earth. We hate waiting...at least I do, and we don't realize that wishing the wait to go away, only makes time more scarce because we've just wasted the wait.  Instead of hating it, why don't we just forget that we are waiting and live in the moment? Why don't we realize that the waiting period is the moment?

It's complicated thinking about time.  It ties one's mind in a tight knot and soon we are just caught up in a sticky web that only makes us even more confused.  That's why this Christmas eve...in a year when life was so weird for the entire world, I just want to simplify things.  I don't want to worry about anything...and I want to remember that life happens while we wait.  I don't want to waist time.  So, I want to seek a way to make the wait count.  As I wait for test results to come back, as I wait for vaccines to become available, as I wait for quarantine to be over, as I wait for things to change, as I wait for Christmas to come, I want to keep my eyes on the moment, and make the wait count.

How do I do that?  By resting in the arms of hope while I wait...for Hope is a Person who never disappoints. 

I want to tell Dylan not to be in such a hurry.  I want to tell him how all will be over in the blink of an eye...but I will not...I will just let him enjoy the excitement of the moment, even if he thinks he doesn't like to wait...and I'll try to make the time memorable, even if it means just giving him an extra long hug.

I pray that this Christmas eve we may all seek and find Hope as we wait...in the Precious Name of Jesus, in Whom our Hope resides.  Amen!