Summary: A big part of Christmas is waiting. For adults, sometimes it seems like Christmas comes out of nowhere, but for kids, it seems like Christmas will never come. Many kids have trouble sleeping the night before Christmas, and Christmas morning they’re up, bright and early, ready for the festivities to begin. But the adults make them wait: until 7 am, or until the coffee is made, or until everyone is awake. Waiting can be the hardest part, but the kids have their hopes up. Just imagine waiting for Jesus to be born. Mary and Joseph had been waiting for nine months, but many people had been waiting a lot longer! Isaiah prophesied a ruler would be a descendent of Jesse, and Micah talks about a ruler coming from tiny little Bethlehem. The Jewish people were waiting for this ruler to come, and they waited with hope that this ruler would save them politically. He came, but in a form they did not expect. Sometimes we have to wait for prayers to be answered or for change to happen. But while we wait, we expect in hope, and trust that God will provide. Waiting seems passive, but hope is something we can do while we wait. Maybe this Christmas, we are waiting for someone we love to come to know Christ, or we are waiting for some good news in a world of sadness. Don’t just wait – hope, and God will come to you, like He came in the form of Jesus. This is Luis Palau.
