EYES ON THE PRINCE

 Advent. The period of waiting. Waiting in anticipation. Nothing could more aptly fit our lives right now. As the second candle of the Advent wreath was lit last Sunday, the candle of Peace, I couldn’t help but think of how much we have needed peace this last tumultuous month. 

Last Christmas, we were filled with joy and wonder as this new little babe who arrived at our door, slipped seamlessly into our family and enriched our lives. His coming was a beautiful reminder of the coming of the Awaited One, who changed the world forever. This year it’s the possibility that our babe might leave us that has me turning my eyes to the manger once again. 

If you know us or have been following my blog, you know that we are currently foster parents to a very precious little boy. This week marks the one year anniversary of his arrival in our lives. A day that changed us forever. He arrived just before Christmas – an early Christmas gift we said. A long awaited one. Three weeks old – he already had a story and a plan for his future was already in motion. We thought we knew where this was going. But, as often happens in foster care, nothing is certain and things change unexpectedly and frequently. 

What began as a journey headed one direction, quickly derailed in August at a court hearing and we were thrown into several months where the only decision consecutively being made was to defer making a decision until the next court date. Finally a decision was made – 3 more months of “we will see”. And now with another court hearing looming, the plan has changed trajectory again and we find ourselves likely heading into another 6 months of added appointments, upheaval, and adjustment. All under laid with even more uncertainty than before as to where our Little Man will finally be able to call home. 

These past few weeks, I’ve shed my share of tears. I’ve wrestled with the questions that seem to have no answer and run the gamut from anger to compassion (and everything in between). For the mama of the little boy we both love. For a broken system. For the “powers that be” and the decisions made affecting the direction of multiple lives. I’ve asked the “why” and the “when” more times than I can count. And though it’s difficult, I know we would still choose this path again, if given the chance. We didn’t answer the call to foster blindly. We knew the risks. We weren’t naive about the challenges. And we embraced what we knew God laid on our hearts and stepped out in faith to love the two little boys whose lives we have shared and invested in over the past two years. My eyes have been opened to brokenness in a way they weren’t before. My heart has expanded further than I knew it had capacity to do so. Has it been hard? Yes. Has there been soul crushing grief? Yes. Have there been repercussions for our family? Oh, yes. But there have also been precious moments of boundless joy sprinkled in along the way. There have been moments of learning to trust. Learning to take steps when you can’t see solid ground beneath your feet. And teaching your children what it means reach out your hand to those who need it. To follow in the Master’s footsteps in tangible ways. Has it been worth it? Absolutely. But never in my wildest dreams did I expect the unknown to be so difficult. Never did I expect the “in between” to feel so long and dark and scary. And I wonder at the timing of it all.

I often become very reflective at Christmastime. I like to take some time to focus on the Reason we are celebrating and to think back on all that has happened over the past year. This year as we sit in this waiting and uncertainty, I am once again drawn to remember another time of waiting. An entire nation was waiting. The whole world was waiting. While troubles multiplied and hope grew dim. Waiting. After centuries of the same. Waiting in silence. Waiting for deliverance. Waiting for a Saviour. Waiting in the midst of the chaos and oppression. Waiting for the Prince of Peace.

When the shepherds received the news that the Saviour had come, they ran with singular purpose to search Him out. And when they had seen Him, they spread the news of Him everywhere. When the Magi saw His star rise in the East, they travelled a great distance, encountering who knows what kind of obstacles, just to see Him and worship Him. Simeon, a faithful man of God, who longed for the coming of the Messiah, found rest as he gazed on the face of the One for whom he had been waiting his whole life. Anna the prophetess, a woman who spent the many years of her widowhood living for the presence of God, was filled with Joy and Thanksgiving when she laid eyes on Him and spoke of Him to all who were looking for the redemption of Israel. 

The Prince of Peace had come!

Peace. The dictionary defines peace as “freedom from disturbance; tranquility”. Sometimes we think peace must mean the absence of trouble, and sometimes it does, but I think more often it is finding freedom from our trouble while still being in the middle of it – the ability to rest secure, while the storm still rages. I have been reminded of this twice in the last two days and again this morning by the guest speaker at our church. He was preaching from the story in Mark 4, where Jesus was asleep on a pillow in the middle of a storm. A storm so rough and terrible that the disciples, four of whom were fishermen who lived on the sea, were convinced that they were going to die. And Jesus was sleeping! How could He sleep? I was struck by that picture. Jesus slept, completely at peace while the storm raged. While his disciples were losing their minds with fear. Because He knew Who He was and Whose he was. He rested confidently knowing He was in his Father’s hands and will. He could sleep because He knew “my Abba’s got this”.

What would it take to live with that kind of confidence? To have that kind of peace, when you feel like the circumstances in your life are threatening to drag you under? To be able to rest? I think it starts with where we put our focus. What we put before our eyes. What we are seeking.

Prince of Peace. When we look to Jesus, we cannot help but be changed. When we keep our eyes and minds on Him, we are placing our trust in Him. Knowing that we are His. Knowing that nothing can snatch us from His Hand. And whether He calms the storms around us as He did for the disciples in Mark 4 or He asks us to step out onto the roiling waves and empowers us to walk upon them, as He did for Peter in Matthew 14, He promises us His peace. 

Prince of Peace. His peace isn’t based on circumstances. His peace isn’t dependent on the absence of trouble. Because He is our Peace. And He remains the same through eternity. He isn’t changed by what is happening around us. He’s never surprised by the storms that come. And He never leaves us, even when the water surges in over our heads. He is our Anchor. Our Hope and our Stronghold. He is the Rest that we need for our weary souls.

So, this Christmas, I choose to keep my eyes on the Prince. To race to the manger, as the shepherds did and humbly kneel in the straw before the One who holds my heart. I will lay down in the Peace that He is and find my rest. Knowing that He sees the end from the beginning. Knowing that He directs our steps. Knowing that my Abba’s got this. 

Merry Christmas, dear friends. And may Peace Himself meet you where you need Him most.