Finding Hope in Prayer

Beloved People of God,

As we gather together this Sunday, we will light the first candle of Advent. The first candle is known as the “Prophet’s Candle” because it symbolizes the anticipation of the ages felt by men and women, prophets and kings, who longed for the arrival of the Messiah. When times felt consumed by the dark, the candle of God’s prophetic voice speaking through His prophets burned brightly for His people. The Spirit spoke through women and men like Deborah and Samuel who sang of the Lord’s enduring faithfulness toward His people.

We light this first candle in hope. We rejoice in the lumination hope brings to our dark places. The light of hope casts out the shadows and drives away our doubts. By the light of hope, we work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2.12). As Paul told his spiritual son Timothy, this “is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe” (1 Timothy 4.10). We find hope in prayer, and our prayer of hope leads us more deeply into belief.

The light of hope guides our feet in all times and all sorts of situations. We can dream of easy days and comfortable nights, but life shows us that the light of hope is all the more meaningful when we face difficult days and nights stained with tears. In those dark times, the flicker of hope is all we can keep our eyes on. This must have been how Joseph and Mary felt as the Messiah grew within Mary's virgin womb. God’s plan created complications in their lives that needed the light of hope. The Irish Jesuits reveal how clear it was that “Joseph puzzled over what he should do and finally resolved on a particular course of action before the angel intervened. We too are often left by God to puzzle over what we should do in difficult circumstances.” But we do not puzzle alone or in the dark. We have the light of hope, the candle of Christ’s prophetic promise.

This Advent, let’s begin praying with hope.

For His Name’s Sake,

Brett