“Where you go. I will go; and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God” (Ruth 1:16).
Hope can be hard to find, especially when you feel like you are alone. I have felt alone during the season of Advent, desperately searching for a strong hand to guide me through. There have been many times in my life that hope has felt out of reach, and the mystery and amazement of God felt like it would never reach me. But as Ruth chooses Naomi to be her family and show her the persistent hope of God, the family I have found at Highland have done the same for me. During these hard times, I was surrounded and steadied by hands that not only brought me hope but showed me God’s unwavering and amazing love.
With the Advent season upon us, we are reminded of the bewildering birth of Jesus and the hope that it continues to give us. This hope that comes from out of the blue gives us the spirit and the protection to continue to spread God’s message and love with others. The following piece of music, Denn er hat seinen Engeln befohlen by Mendelssohn, reminds me of the strength and protection that God’s love and hope give to us.
https://youtu.be/-GsxzhnW63Y?si=M9YlVFWClgCdTF4c
I invite you to think about who in your life has shown God’s hope to you when you needed it most? How has Highland created that community of hope and love in your life?
Prayer: Lord, help us in this joyful season to find the hope around us and share that with all your children. Help us to spread your love and hopefulness with those who need it most, in order to help them know you better, and for us to fulfill your word. Amen.
Jenna Proffit is a senior at the University of Louisville and has been singing at Highland Baptist Church for the last three years.