Countdown to Christmas: 12 Days to Prepare Your HeartSample

The Long Wait

Do you remember what waiting for Christmas felt like as a kid? Do you feel nostalgic about watching each date on the calendar tick by, the excitement only growing and growing with each passing day…

“What presents will I be getting?”

“How much longer do I need to wait?”

Then, on Christmas Eve, unable to sleep with your mind racing, you imagine what great things the next day holds. Finally, it will be the day we’ve all been waiting for.

Sometimes we can forget that the Christmas story began long before the events of the Gospels. For thousands of years, God’s people had waited in great anticipation for the Messiah — a Saviour who would not only restore God’s people, but also finally establish His eternal kingdom on earth.

This is the person that we find described in Isaiah 11:1-9. Someone who would finally, after thousands of years of chaos and darkness, bring justice for God’s people. Then, all the earth would be filled with knowledge of the Lord. Where there had been conflict, there will be peace. Where there is death, there will be life.

Isaiah 11:1–9 is just one of more than 300 prophecies and foreshadowings found in the Old Testament that point to Jesus. The great news is, unlike the Israelites, we don’t have to wait for our hope to arrive. He has come, and He is establishing His Kingdom on this earth.

Reflect: How hopeful do I feel right now?

Pray: Lord, today I place my hope in you. Silence the voice of doubt in my mind, and restore in me my confidence in you.