It seems too good to be true. This Jesus story seems inexplicable. How could a baby be born to a virgin? How could a man of that day, Joseph, still accept Mary, a pregnant girl, who was carrying a child who didn’t belong to him? How could the Savior of this world come in such lowly of conditions? Don’t get me wrong, I really want Jesus to be real. I want to believe in the story and know for sure He exists. I hope it’s true.
The Jewish people of that day were waiting for a Savior and had expectations of a king coming to rescue them and restore their temple and rituals. They wanted the coming of their Messiah to be true and to happen as soon as possible; they were hoping. When their expectations of how the Savior arrived weren’t met, though, they sadly chose not to see that night as their night of hope. They missed it.
It is possible for us, even today, to declare to the world that we desire God and still miss it; our hope. When we desire God, and His truth, in our lives, we can bring expectations that, if left unacknowledged, can end up blinding us from the very truth God intends. We get caught up in the things of this world, the expectations, and we miss God working.
Here’s the rub: hope is an expectation. Where you place your expectations largely impact when and what you see God doing in the world around you. It affects the outlook you have in life. The night of Jesus’ birth was the perfect time for hope. For the Jews who had their hope in God, they saw Jesus as the Messiah and the church began. It took Paul a little longer to realize what God was doing, and yet when he did, he truly came alive and penned the words “hope does not disappoint”.
Paul learned that when he was aligned with God, his expectations were in God and not in the circumstances; therefore, hope does not disappoint. When asked if the story of Jesus is true and people respond, “I hope it’s true”, they are putting expectations in others besides God. This is a sure-fire way to arrive at disappointment. For, hope is also trust. When I respond, “I hope it’s true”, I’m saying “I trust it’s true”. If hope does not disappoint and God is hope, we can be sure that God cannot disappoint.
What are you going through during this holiday season? Where have you allowed hope to be placed in your life? Are you full of disappointments? Cry out to God! Been hurt too many times? Cry out to God! Love the life you’ve been given? Cry out to God! He is our all-knowing, all-caring God who desires for His people to fully expect Him to work in their lives regardless of our circumstances. Put your hope in God!
© 2014 Susan M. Sims
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Thank you Susan. May I cry out to God more, for all His many blessings.