Keep hope alive! This statement has served - over time – as a mantra of possibility for many. In the context of the Advent season, the statement takes on bold meaning. It is in the message of Advent that we discover the promise that help is on the way, and find encouragement to keep hope alive!
In this season, we remember the hope of the prophet Isaiah who proclaimed:“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called wonderful, counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting father, the prince of peace (Isaiah 9:6).
In many ways, our days seem to be filled with doom and gloom. Just open the newspaper - political unrest, social dysfunction, economic uncertainty, natural disasters, and community violence, not to mention spiritual demise, abounds. Just last week a young 21 year old man was shot and murdered while walking his dog in the Cherry Hill community of Baltimore.
In the midst of these realities, and uncertainty about the days ahead, the Advent season reminds us that we have to keep hope alive! We are beckoned to remain hopeful in these trying times. Hope is not something that is static, but alive. It may not even be material, but hope helps us to sense how God will be at work in our lives in the future.
Maybe that’s why persons of faith in ages past could sing even in the lowest of times –
My hope is built on nothing less
My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus’ blood and righteousness,
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
but wholly lean on Jesus’ name…
On Christ the solid rock I stand.
All other ground is sinking sand…
We are encouraged today to Keep Hope Alive!
Indeed hope helps us to hold on in trying times.
The song-writer was right –
Time is filled with swift transition
Time is filled with swift transition
Naught the earth unmoved can stand
Build your HOPE on things eternal.
Hold to God’s unchanging hand!
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