The temperature continues to drop.
The darkness sticks around a little longer than I like it too.
There is waiting and long lines and more waiting. 
The to-do list has tripled. 
The radio plays the same 7 Christmas songs.
The trees are naked and the sky is gray.

And yet, this is my favorite time of the year.

Our world is brimming with wonder and anticipation.

It can be felt in every room you enter.

Wonder is heard in the songs we sing on Sunday morning and anticipation builds as we read story after story.

It is during this time of year that my mind drifts back to the first Christmas.

The Christmas when only a few knew it was Christmas.

Christ was born and the word/Word slowly got out.

News doesn’t spread like it used to.

Recently, I’ve been thinking of those who waited for the Savior’s birth.

There are 400 years between Malachi and Matthew, between Who will come and Who has arrived.

400 years of waiting.
400 years of silence.
400 years of enduring.
400 years of remembering.
400 years of questioning.

And yet, hope remained.

The people of God continued to tell of God’s promise of a Savior.

Parents gathered their children and spoke of a day when Hope would arrive.

Elders encouraged younger generations to keep trusting, to keep looking.

Storytellers fielded questions of who and when and how as they themselves wondered who and when and how.

The story of God’s faithfulness was not forgotten, but shared.

And then, 400 years later, the Word became flesh and the story continued.

Hope arrived.

The wait was worth it.

The wait is worth it.

And so, we continue to wait.

We continue to hope.

We continue to tell the story, but the story we tell is a little longer for we live in the already and not yet.

Christ has come and He will come again, but like they did before the page was turned, we wait. 

We endure.
We hope.
We keep watch.

One day the page will turn again and we will be face to face with Christ the King forever and ever.

About the Author

Tanner Olson is an author, poet, speaker, and podcaster living in Nashville, Tennessee.

He is the author of I’m All Over the Place, As You Go, Walk A Little Slower, and Continue: Poems and Prayers of Hope.

You can find Tanner Olson’s books on Amazon.

His podcast is The Walk A Little Slower Podcast with Tanner Olson and can be found wherever you listen to podcasts.

Tanner Olson travels around the country sharing poetry, telling stories, and delivering messages of hope.

You can follow Tanner Olson on Instagram (@writtentospeak) and Facebook where you’ll daily find encouraging words of faith and hope.