For the past two years, two angels have hovered above the dirt in our front pillar pot, announcing tidings of Joy and Peace to all passer-bys. But the two have always bothered me. Probably because I have three girls, and hey, let’s face it, girls care about this sort of thing. Three girls equals three angels in the pot, not two.

So this year I did my due diligence and ordered a third angel to stick in our pot, and Wednesday afternoon, Hope arrived. As I trooped back inside with Caroline in tow from adding Hope’s glad tidings to the other two, the significance of what I had done hit me. This Christmas, I added Hope. Stuck her in the pot. Dug her post down in the dirt. And allowed her to proclaim her glad tidings along with the other two. In the past several months, with news of job loss, news of cancer, news of death, and news of despair, Hope seemed a necessary addition to the entrance to our Home this year. She added a concrete reminder that the Hope of Immanuel’s coming trumps the arrival of anything else. Hope that because Jesus came, His Presence ushered in all that is real, all that is sacred, all that is worth fighting for, standing for, waiting for, believing for, and yes, even dying for.

I opened up an email this morning from a dear friend who is an advocate for women in persecuted places all over the world and watched a video from a link in the email. I wept through most of the it as I watched a young woman give her testimony of Hope. Hope that comes only when the Person of Jesus steps into your room, your cell, your home, your life. If you have a moment, click on the link and watch the video for yourself: http://www.bethel.tv/watch/1933/christinas-story/2013/12/07?session=897

But more importantly, invite Hope in this morning, this weekend, this week, this year. Stick her in your front pot. Hang her from your Christmas tree. Herald her news wherever you go in your words, your action, and your focus. Not only has Hope come, not only is Hope here in the present in the hearts of those who believe in the babe in the manger, but Hope is coming for all those who bend their hearts and their knees to King Jesus. Don’t waste any more time on despair. Plant the seeds of Hope that will today and one day bring an eternal harvest of Joy and Peace in the living Presence of our King.