By Geoffrey Spencer

And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you. Sing praises to the Lord, who dwells in Zion. Declare his deeds among the peoples.

“A Brightness of Hope,” Choose Hope: Adult Study Guide, Herald House, p. 14, adapted

Christian hope is the conviction that the totality of our lives exists by the promise of God. If it were not for this “horizon of expectation” then we might well be totally immobilized, unable to live with any sense of assurance in the present moment and devoid of any faith in the trustworthiness of the future.

As rich and versatile as the English language is, it does not always provide the means to describe some of the realities we wish to identify. So it is with the word “future.” In much of the writing about hope, it has been found helpful to make a critical distinction.

There are two Latin words for future: futurum and adventus. Futurum, the future participle of fuo, the same word from which we get our word physics...is the future actualization of potentialities within things. Adventus is the appearance of something new that is not yet within things, not even as potentiality.

Although it might be hazardous to press this contrast to extreme lengths, it does offer a powerful perspective for grasping the distinctive nature of hope. The Christian calendar features the period of Advent, the time when something occurred that could not possibly be foreseen merely as an extension of the present. A new reality broke into the stream of events from the future.

When will justice, freedom, peace, and dignity happen if they happen at all? For Christians this is not the question. There is always the future (adventus) which comes toward us from God as a promise. In relation to the adventus our question is, “How can we live now as if the horizon of that future had already broken into our lives through the Spirit of Jesus Christ?”

The discovery of this new horizon of freedom leads us to actions because God hopes for us, and it is up to us to live now as if the “form of this world is passing away” and the new creation is already present in our lives (1 Corinthians 7:25–31).

Prayer Phrase

“Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; persevere in prayer” (Romans 12:12).

Deepening Roots

A tree with superficial roots will wither during drought, or severe storms may uproot it. A tree whose roots go deep is stable and draws from deep waters. Imagine yourself as a tree by a river or stream. Sense your roots extending deep into the earth in search of God’s Spirit. Reflect or pray about what you hope to find as your spirit searches for deeper identity in God.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.