Advent #1 Hope and Murphy's Law For 2020

One For The Books 

2020 is one year that is for the memory books: It might could be described as “Murphy’s Law” on steroids. Y’all remember Murphy and his law don’t you? If he were here today, old Murphy would espouse that “Anything that could go wrong, at a particular point in time, would absolutely go wrong at the worst possible time that it could go wrong.” For example, he would say, “If you have an open face peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and if you dropped it, that sandwich would invariably fall face down.” I suspect that, if I took a poll, many would indeed say 2020 is a “Murphy’s Law” kind of year. Still, this does not apply to the season when we think about the coming of The Savior to Planet Earth.

Consider this: During this first Sunday of Advent, we are celebrating the “Hope” that only God can give during times that are, for many people, hopeless. Some time ago, I received from the Lord an acrostic that clearly describes what having a relationship with Jesus accomplishes in our lives. For me, H.O.P.E. is Holding On Promises Eternal. And this first Advent candle, that celebrates Jesus, who is the Messiah’s, coming is the candle that gives us that which we desperately need during 2020. It shouts to us, “There Is HOPE!”

For example, first, the H.O.P.E. of His coming is the hope of being forgiven of every sin and it is the hope of being transformed. It is the hope that He will come into a person’s heart, and He will reside there in relationship with that person who yields to Him. But there is more! One of my favorite, hope filled promises, to which I hold, and that is eternal, is Colossians 1:21-23. Hear what the Apostle Paul said:

Once you were alienated from God, and were enemies in your own mind,
because of your evil behavior.
But now God has reconciled us, by Christ’s physical body, through death,
and He did this to present us Holy in His sight, without blemish and free from ALL accusation, if you continue in the faith, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel.

I don’t know about you, but in a year like 2020, this promise really is what I previously described: This really is something I want to grab on to, and I want to Hold On to this Promise Eternal! It encourages me, and it empowers me, to know that, not only has God brought us into a relationship with Him, but that, in doing so, when He looks at you and me, God sees us as Holy, with no blemishes, and we are completely free from all accusation! He sees us as His perfect children! All we have to do is keep on holding on to this “Hope” held out in the gospel! All we have to do is embrace the wonderful thought that God sees you and me, His children, as holy! When He looks at us, He sees NO blemishes, and He even tells us that there is nothing of which we can be accused! WOW! I am going to Hold On this Promise Eternal Y’all! Such a grace grant, like this, from God, does my heart a whole lot of good!

The Challenge

What about you? Do you want to Hold On Promises Eternal? Do you have any God promises, that are in God’s eternal Word, that mean something special to you? Rather than holding on to the “Murphy’s Law” doldrums mentality of 2020, can you bring yourself to a place where God can encourage you? Can you choose to let God build you up in the faith? Can you pick out some of your own favorite promises, where you Hold On these Promises Eternal? Come on! Give it a shot! Take up my challenge, as I challenge you to do what I do: Go ahead and focus the locus of your focus on the spiritual exercise of Holding On Promises Eternal! There are thousands of promises God offers in His word, and these promises are doubly validated, now that the Savior has come!

So, go through your Bible, or any Bible, and then highlight a number of these sacred texts! Once you have a few of these underlined, read them out loud many times. And as you do so, watch what happens to your heart, your soul and your mind! I believe, if you sincerely take up this challenge, it will amaze you how you feel, even though 2020 is still around. Don’t let 2020 bring you down any longer. Let God lift you up! Hold On Promises Eternal today, and everyday, that God gives you life.

God Bless You. May your reflection, on this hope filled part of Jesus coming, bring you peace.

SoJourner