Hope - the Thing that is Anchored
Read Jeremiah 29:1-19 O Come, O Come, Emmanuel is one of my favorite, if not the favorite, of all Christmas Carols. Matt Maher’s singing of O Come, O Come Emmanuel is my favorite rendition. It’s my favorite because it captures the meaning of Christmas so well. The Israeli people - captive physically and spiritually, waiting for freedom. Imagine it with me. You’re living in limbo. It’s fault of the entire nation, which includes you. Everyone is being punished. War is everywhere. Your city has burned to the ground. You were told this was coming, there were so many warnings. Years of warnings. But you didn’t really believe it. You thought you safe because after all – you’re God’s chosen people. Surely, He wouldn’t slay you all to the ground and remove you from existence. He promised. Right? But now the enemy soldiers have come, and everything is laid waste. You’ve been forced to a new country, a new home, new food, a new language, new customs, not...
