Waiting in Hope - Advent Season - Andy Southmayd

The first week of Advent leads us straight into the tension we all feel: we’re people living between promise and fulfillment. Scripture shows generation after generation waiting in the dark for God to move and when the Light finally breaks in through Jesus, we see the shaping power of hope.

In this message we explore:

• Why Advent begins with waiting
• How the 400 “silent years” form the backdrop of Jesus’ arrival
• The messy human experience of hoping for what hasn’t yet come
• The stories of Zachariah, Elizabeth, Mary, Joseph, Simeon, and Anna
• How hope shapes us, not after the waiting, but in it
• Why Jesus’ coming reframes our deepest questions and disappointments
• How we open our tables, time, and generosity to embody Hope this season

If your story right now carries longing, silence, unmet hopes, or deep questions, we invite you to watch this teaching. Advent gives language to the in-between places we often don’t know how to name.

“We live in unshakable hope of the coming dawn.”