Scripture: Isaiah 40:1-5 (NRSV)
Key Verse:
Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
Reflection
Isaiah describes a God who enters rugged places—valleys, mountains, uneven ground—and transforms them with love. The prophet’s vision is active; it envisions a God who reshapes both the landscape of our world and our hearts. Advent hope is based on the belief that God is actively at work within life’s difficult, uneven, and weary places.
Sometimes those “level places” arrive in subtle, unexpected ways: a conversation that softens a hardened heart, a moment of clarity that reorients us, an unexpected kindness that shifts our perspective. These glimpses may be small, but they hold the fingerprints of a God who refuses to leave us unchanged. They are the early signs of transformation, quiet but unmistakable.
Hope grows through these moments of interruption. Even when circumstances feel immovable, God is already smoothing paths we can’t yet see. Advent invites us to stay awake to the holy disruptions that remind us God is breaking in, preparing a way even in the wilderness.
Application (Action)
Pay attention today for a moment of “God breaking in.” Acknowledge it when you see it.
Writing Prompt
Where have you lately seen even a small sign that God is transforming something in your life?
Prayer
God, who breaks in, sharpen my vision today. Help me see the small openings where your love is already making a way. Amen.