Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14 ESV

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 ESV

Have you ever had to wait for something in your life? Of course, haven’t we all? I’ve shared my epilepsy diagnosis before; the meds I had to take could cause birth defects, specifically cleft lip and pallet. I got pregnant while on the medication, twice. With each pregnancy, I waited with prayers and hope that my babies would be born healthy. Hope in God, trust in His promises, and His abiding presence is what helps us through the waiting. Thank you, Lord God for waiting with me and fulfilling my hope! Both were born without any problems.

Today is the first day of December which means that the Christmas season is upon us. Just as we are waiting to celebrate Christ’s birth at Christmas, so, too, were the early Hebrews, God’s people, waiting for their Messiah.

The prophecies of the coming Messiah were as early as Genesis (Genesis 3:15) and continued throughout the Old Testament. Our verses for today are from Isaiah, which were written before the 8^th century BCE. That  is 2,800 to 2,700 years before Jesus was born. That was a long time to wait!

Besides the prophecies in Isaiah, there were hundreds of other prophecies about the Messiah; including that He would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2), that He would be “God’s Son” (Psalm 2:1-12).

This Christmas season as we wait to celebrate the birth of the Messiah, Christ Jesus, our Lord, let us shine the hope and love and light we share because of His grace and mercy and everlasting love unto salvation. Let’s share His story, and our story, with those we meet this Christmas season!

I thank God for each of you! And I thank you for joining me this Christmas season as we wait joyfully to celebrate the miraculous birth of Christ Jesus, our Savior.

Blessings of hope and joy and peace in the waiting!