Theme:  Our hope is in Jesus. (first Sunday of Advent)

Object:  A Christmas Star and Advent Wreath

Scripture:  We wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Titus 2: 13-14

When I was a little boy, there was a rhyme we would say in the evening when it would begin to get dark.  As soon as it was dark enough for us to see the very first star in the sky, we would say,

Star light, star bright,
First star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might
Get the wish I wish tonight.

After we had said that, we would make a wish for something that we would like to have.  Have any of you ever heard or said  that rhyme before?  Did you really expect to receive your wish?  I know that when I said that rhyme, I never really expected my wish to come true.  I looked up the word wish in the dictionary and this is what it said, "to have a desire for something impossible, such as, 'he wished he could live his life over'."  When we wish upon a star, we have no reason to expect our wishes to come true.

Today, I want  us to think about another star.  I want us to think about the Christmas star.  The Christmas star is not a wishing star, but a star of hope.  What is the difference?  Well, I looked up the word hope in the dictionary too.  Here is what it said, "to desire something with the expectation that you will receive it."  There is a big difference in wishing and hoping, isn't there?  In wishing, you have no reason to expect it to come true, and in hoping, you have every reason to expect it to come true.  We see many stars in the decorations of Christmas.  Those stars represent the star that appeared in the sky on the first Christmas and led the wise men to Jesus.  That star was not a wishing star, but a star of hope, because it led to Jesus.  The Bible says, "We wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ."  During this Christmas season, instead of wishing upon a star, let us follow His star, because it will lead us to the true meaning of the season, the hope that we have in Jesus.

Today we light the first candle on the Advent wreath--the candle of hope.  It reminds us that our hope is in Jesus.

Dear Jesus, as we see the many stars in the decorations of this season, may they remind us that a star led the wise men to find the One who brings us hope.  May we put our hope and trust in you.  Amen.