25 Days of Advent: Forged for our Hope – Day 7

As I circled the block, my eyes took in the spectacular view of home after home bedecked in bright twinkling lights. The glow emanated warmth, illuminating the dark night sky. Even the moon appeared to be overshadowed by their joyful presence.

To celebrate the happiness of Christmas, many neighbours can be found teetering atop unsteady ladders hooking stands of lights across the slant of their roof. Some wrap lights around dry bare tree branches, adding large Christmas balls that seem to float against the sky. And some even go as far as covering nearly every square inch of their home in sparkly lights creating a fairytale of sorts with an abundance of decor all timed to music.

What fond memories we create with our children when we pile them into the car and head out on a hunt seeking out the homes with the greatest twinkle. The hilarity that ensues when my children get the giggles because someone has spotted a Santa dancing in his knickers swaying back and forth to some old time rock and roll.

Within the depths of our soul there exists a deep desire to be saturated by light. We open the curtains that cloak our windows releasing a sigh of relief when we witness the rising of the sun. We flood a room with the flick of a switch so we can see where we are going. We comfort children when the darkness steals their security as their eyes flutter towards a deep slumber.

We are people drawn to the power of light. So the coming Messiah would bring with Him the greatest light of them all:

Isaiah 9:1-2, Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honour Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—

The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned.

The world was once full of darkness and God called forth the light to flood every crevice. But God knew that though the light was of great importance, the darkness would befall again and His children would need comfort when the darkness stole their security. So He would flood His Son’s Spirit with the brightest of light. A light that would possess the ability to saturate a soul with peace and warmth and goodness and mercy.

In the beginning of the book of Matthew, we find Jesus in the wilderness fasting for forty days and forty nights. Suffering from great hunger, it was here that He encountered the temptation of the enemy, satan wanting to test Jesus to prove He was who He said He was. After Jesus commanded the enemy to leave Him, scripture tells us that Jesus began His ministry and the prophecy of the Messiah was fulfilled:

Matthew 4:13-16, Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:

“Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles—
the people living in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
a light has dawned.”

We are forged for our hope when we encounter the tests and temptations of the enemy, fighting to overcome the darkness by seeking the greatest of light. Christ desires to illuminate our darkness with His warmth, saturating us with His comfort when it threatens to kill, steal, and destroy our security.

Our souls are akin to the creation of the world- once full of darkness. But with one command, by the power of the Holy Spirit, Christ holds the ability to bring forth His light flooding every crevice of our heart and soul.

And it this very light, this light of Christ, that illuminates us with the joyful twinkle others desire to see.

Father, saturate me with your light. Like a moth to a flame, I am drawn to your warmth and comfort. I stand amazed and mesmerized by your strength and power to illuminate the path set before me. In Jesus name, amen.

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