My world has been a bit unsteady lately. Marriage and parenting are constant guessing games, as I wonder how to best love my husband and kids well. At work, my job duties have been shifting in a manner that feels far beyond my control. The current state and future of our nation seems divided and uncertain.
Life has left me grasping for consistency and familiarity.
God has brought to mind a scripture that has been a faithful source of comfort and peace throughout my years of walking with him: Be still and know that I am God (Psalm 46:10). Typically I resonate most with the idea of stillness and the need to quiet myself. But in this season, he has highlighted the command to know. When I read this word in this context, it speaks of confidence, an intentional effort to believe the truth that He is sovereign, He is divine, He is God.
This sense of deep knowing is a necessary ingredient of hope. And hope is the platform from which we dive into the season of Advent. For those who have walked with Jesus through past holiday seasons, you may be familiar with the season of Advent being one of anticipation, waiting, and preparation for the sacred celebration of the coming of the King, first in human form and then when he returns. Borrowing from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Advent can be described as
“...when the Church celebrates the liturgy of Advent each year, she makes present this ancient expectancy of the Messiah, for by sharing in the long preparation for the Savior’s first coming, the faithful renew their ardent desire for his second coming. By celebrating the precursor’s birth and martyrdom, the Church unites herself to his desire: ‘He must increase, but I must decrease.”
In expecting, preparing for and desiring the second coming of Christ, we are asserting that we have hope in something greater. We are walking out the knowledge that our Redeemer God will come and restore. When life seems especially unstable, we are given the opportunity to lean further into hope, and to further define what our hope is in.
What is it that we know for certain?
The red and golden leaves will fall from the trees every fall, and green leaves will take their place every spring.
As long as we are living earthside, we have breath and a beating heart.
Human beings will forever need and crave love and connection.
God’s presence will never leave us.
His mercies are new every morning.
He was, is, and will always be God.
A common practice of healthy living is to maintain a daily gratitude list, to acknowledge what we have to be thankful for. There is research that proves that keeping a gratitude list decreases depression and improves overall health. In honor of this Advent season, I challenge you to keep a daily or weekly log of what you know to be true. These truths are what we place our hope in. As we dwell in the truths that are deeply known, may our hope flourish and extend far beyond the worries of today.
About the Author
Britni D’Eliso is a quiet but fearless spirit who is earnestly seeking the beauty of the redemption that Jesus has personally determined for her life. Committed to the truth that listening breeds understanding and understanding results in compassion, she clings to the power of life’s stories. She has embarked on the venture of discovering her own story and lending an ear to the stories lived out in others and savors the trace of Jesus that is woven throughout them all. Currently, that journey has landed her in a balancing act between the role of wife, momma, and a mental health therapist.