Waiting in Hope!

When I was a child, Christmas Day was the most exciting day of the year. My brother and I would wait in great expectancy for Christmas morning. But it wasn’t just us who were excited. Mum and Dad were just as excited as they watched with great pleasure and joy at our reactions when the annual pillow-case was opened long before dawn. I can remember even now some of the childhood gifts that made the greatest impact on me!

For hundreds of years God’s people had hung on to the promises of the prophets. One day they knew there would be an astonishing event that would transform the world, when God himself would fulfil the expectations of the waiting people and their Messiah, God their Saviour as Micah described Him, would come.

But as the centuries rolled by and the people of God went through times of great distress, you can understand their constant questioning of God as to when it was all going to happen. But each time one of God’s prophets spoke out what was on the heart of God, it seemed as though the promised coming of the Messiah was still on God’s agenda. And that was what Micah was saying in our verse for today – ‘I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Saviour.’ He’s still coming!

Just as children feel that Christmas will never come, but eventually it does. God’s people thought Messiah would never come, but then He suddenly did. We have so much to rejoice in and give thanks to God for. Sadly, most of the Jewish peoples didn’t recognise Him when he came. But today we are seeing a new day dawning, with more and more Jewish Messianic believers joining with the Gentile believers and together worshipping our Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.

I pray that this Christmas will be a time of great rejoicing for you and your family as you look to the One who is Saviour and Redeemer – the one who opened up the way for all God’s children to enter once again into relationship with Father God. Just as my parents rejoiced at how we loved our presents – Father God rejoices when we welcome His Son – the greatest gift the world has ever known!

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, that your promises were gloriously fulfilled in Jesus. Thank you that this Christmas awe can celebrate the fact that Jesus came and that we can look forward to the time when He comes again. Thank you for the joy of knowing the One who is God my Saviour. In His Name, Amen.