68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people 69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, 70 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, 71 that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us; 72 to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, 73 the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us 74 that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, 75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. 76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, 77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, 78 because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high 79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” (Luke 1:68-79 ESV)
The worst thing was the wait. Once my brother and I were tucked into bed on Christmas Eve, the countdown started. And the next seven or eight hours felt like seventeen or eighteen hours. It was the longest night of the year.
There was nothing worse as a child than waiting in the darkness of that winter night.
But at the first sign of morning light, we sprung from our beds and started knocking on our parents’ bedroom door. It was time. The day was finally here!
Time for presents.
The worst thing is the wait. Waiting for a promise spoken to become a promise fulfilled. Waiting for silence from heaven to become guidance from heaven. Waiting for God to do something when it seems He’s doing nothing.
There’s nothing worse than waiting in the darkness of the winters of life.
“But,” Zechariah proclaims, “look on the horizon.” To those of us siting in darkness, Zechariah says, “The sun is rising.” The Son is rising. It is time. The day is finally here! God is finally here.
Time for Presence.
