SOLID MAPLE, CEDAR LINED AND SECURED with a built-in combina-tion lock, my mom’s cedar chest was a prominent piece of furniture in our home as I was growing up. Inside was kept family “treasures,” safe from moth and rust and the inquisitive fingers of little children.
A hope chest was originally created to hold clothing and household goods in anticipation of marriage. Locked away safely inside, a young woman would store for a future day, that which she would wear and use once her future hope was secured. I am sure, that from time to time, the chest would be opened and the contents inspected and the hope of that future wedding day would be rekindled, complete with starry-eyed dreams and fluttering hearts.
Those who choose to follow Jesus Christ as their God and Savior are made part of what the Bible calls the “bride of Christ.” Our groom is the Lord, Jesus Christ, and we are longing for, hoping for, that glorious wed-ding day when we shall be united with Him forever. But, until that day we wait with hope.
In this season of the year, when we celebrate our Lord’s first Advent (“Coming”), we are reminded of His second Advent and our hope is re-kindled. As we retell and relive the accounts of His first arrival it is like opening our hope chest once again, peering inside and looking forward with renewed hope to the day of promise yet to come.
My prayer for you this Christmas season is that your hope would be rekindled in the One who is truly our Hope and the Lover of our souls.