In the season of long, cold nights, hope isn’t waiting for us to find it.
Hope isn’t sitting patiently on the sidelines.
Hope seeks out the forgotten places – the longest night, the damaged temple, the over-crowded stable, and every corner where tomorrow seems impossible.
Hope bursts in uninvited, without concern for our carefully crafted plans.
Hope shows up as a lamp that keeps burning.
Hope shows up as an improbable baby.
Hope shows up as the sun, returning without ever having left.
Hope shows up as tomorrow, and then tomorrow, and then tomorrow until, against all odds, we feel the future breaking on the horizon.
When we are weary from battle,
when empire seems inevitable,
and when darkness is growing around us…
Hope comes to claim us, and we have the chance to say yes.