The Season of Hope

The Christmas season has already been really challenging for me. I have yet to put up our Christmas decorations, or even think about buying a tree. By now, I'm normally well into the Christmas spirit and playing Christmas songs any chance I get. But not this year.

I've said before how difficult holidays are for us, but Christmas is just the cherry on top. I think it has something to do with how overboard we go for Christmas as a society. It feels like I am continually confronted with the fact that our firstborn baby girl will not be spending Christmas with us. Whether it's "baby's first Christmas" outfits or ornaments, pictures of little ones by the tree, or the few things I bought on sale last year in anticipation of having a little 8 month old with us to open her presents.

I have never been one to love the commercialization of Christmas. Growing up, my mum and dad always made sure we had presents and stockings that were full, but never went overboard like some of my friends' parents. I am so incredibly thankful for this, because now as an adult, Christmas isn't about the presents to me. It's about the excitement, the baking, the dinners, the joy it brings, and celebrating with family and friends. But this year, even this has been taken away. The one little person I want here most just can't be.

Yesterday our pastors spoke on the season of advent and "making space for God." Later that night, a friend I went to school with posted a picture about anticipating "the season of hope," and someone else of the word "Hope" lit up in their front window. These things were exactly what I needed. I needed to be reminded that thousands of years ago, the nation of Israel was given hope in the form of a little baby.

This baby provided hope for the entire world by later dying for our sins and taking on the burden so we wouldn't have to. My favourite Christmas carol says it best - "A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn!" He provided hope to a very tired, oppressed society. And He continues to provide hope to the entire world. On a quiet night, a baby was born in a stable, with no medical intervention or equipment, to a mother and father who were very unprepared for Him. He is the ultimate provider of hope and restoration.

Please pray for us during this incredibly difficult season. I keep telling Derek that I wish I could close my eyes, wake up, and have December be over. Or maybe it would just be easier to wake up in February... I am thankful that December will be busy for us, and that my time will be full of my final few weeks of work and many appointments. This whole season is hard for us, but I have a feeling that waking up on Christmas morning to a house that is quieter than we would like, will be especially difficult.

Also, please remember that Christmas isn't a joyful season for everybody. Not just for us or others who are grieving, but people who struggle to put food on their table, pay their hydro bill, don't know how they will provide their children with presents, or simply don't have any family members or close friends to spend Christmas with. Please prayerfully consider donating somewhere or sponsoring a family or child, instead of buying those "extra" gifts that people simply don't need. And in the mix of the Christmas rushing and craziness, please take the time to be grateful for the people around you, remembering that time is never a guarantee.

While I am in no way implying that our anticipation of baby A's arrival should be compared to the birth of Jesus, I am encouraged by remembering that this is the Season of Hope. And that maybe, Christmas next year will look a little different. Always one person short, but maybe this time next year, we will have a little one waking up with us on Christmas morning. Maybe our house will be full of the sound of giggles and joy, instead of the silence I am very much dreading.

For now, we hang onto the hope that baby A will arrive safely in our arms just over a month after Christmas.