Below is a 5 Day Devotional based off our current series and sermon, this updated weekly on Monday.

A THRILL OF HOPE — 5 Day Devotional
Theme: Hope
Week 1 of Advent

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DAY 1 — Hope Begins in the Dark

Scripture: Isaiah 9:2

Devotion: Advent does not begin with bright lights and warm feelings. It begins in the dark. Israel was walking through what Isaiah calls deep darkness—ṣalmāwet, the shadow of death. Nothing about their situation looked hopeful, yet God still spoke a promise: A great light is coming. Hope is not pretending things are fine. Hope is believing darkness does not get the final word. Even the smallest flame pushes back the night. That is how hope works. It shines before anything changes. It shines because God is faithful.

Reflect: Where does life feel dark or uncertain right now?
What would it look like to hold a single candle of hope there?

Prayer: Jesus, shine Your light into the places where I feel the weight of darkness. Teach my heart to hope in You.

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DAY 2 — Hope Trusts When We Cannot See

Scripture: Luke 1:30–33

Devotion: When the angel came to Mary, nothing about the message made sense. Her response was not “I understand,” but “I trust.” That is hope. It is confidence in a God who does the impossible. The angel literally says, It is not in Gods nature to fail. Mary could not see the whole story, but she knew the One writing it. Sometimes hope looks like holding onto one small promise while the rest of life feels blurry. Like an acorn—small, unimpressive, easily overlooked—but inside is the potential for a forest. Hope holds the seed God gave and trusts Him to bring it to life.  

Reflect: What is one place where God is asking you to trust Him beyond what you can see?

Prayer: Lord, give me Marys posture today. Not full understanding—just full trust.

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DAY 3 — Hope Endures the Stretch

Scripture: Psalm 33:20

Devotion: The Hebrew word for hope—yāchal—is not passive. It means to endure tension, like a cord stretched tight but refusing to snap. Hope is gritty. It holds when everything shakes. It plants its feet when fear wants to run. And it waits because it knows the ending is good. This is why biblical hope outlasts emotions—because it is tied to Gods character, not our circumstances.

Reflect: Where do you feel stretched right now?
How might God be strengthening your hope through the tension?

Prayer: God, when life stretches me, hold me steady. Strengthen the cords of hope in my heart.

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DAY 4 — Hope Rests in Gods Character

Scripture: Romans 15:13

Devotion: Paul calls God the “God of hope.” Hope is not just something God gives; it is who He is. That means hope is not fragile or temporary—it is anchored in His nature. Everything else we tie our hope to eventually shifts: people, timing, health, finances. But God does not change. He does not lie. He does not abandon His promises. Hope becomes strong when it is tied to the right anchor. Or as Corrie ten Boom said, “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”

Reflect: What have you tied your hope to lately?
Is it an anchor—or something that can move?

Prayer: Father, root my hope in who You are. Fill me with joy and peace as I trust You.

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DAY 5 — Hope That Changes How We Wait

Scripture: Isaiah 9:6–7

Devotion: Advent teaches us that waiting is not wasting when God is in the story. Israel waited 400 years in silence. Mary waited nine months while the world kept spinning. And yet the promise came. Hope is not just believing God can work; it is believing God is working—right now, even in what feels unfinished. The Light has already come. The King is already reigning. And the same Jesus who stepped into darkness once is coming again. So we do not wait with fear. We wait with hope.

Reflect: Where am I waiting right now?
What promise from Gods Word can strengthen that waiting?

Prayer: Jesus, teach me to wait with expectation. Let hope shape my heart as I live With You, Like You, For You.