Christ is coming #20

Psalm 33 comes from the perspective of the God of creation looking down on all of human history. It concludes this way:

 18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him,
    on those who hope in his steadfast love,
19 that he may deliver their soul from death
    and keep them alive in famine.
20 Our soul waits for the Lord;
    he is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart is glad in him,
    because we trust in his holy name.
22 Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,
    even as we hope in you.

Here we find tied together the first and third blessing of Advent: Hope and Joy. In fact, the psalm begins with the words: Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous!  The picture is that when we know God is watching, and we believe that He is in control of His creation, and we trust in Him and His plan, we have a reason to hope and every cause for joy: our soul waits for Him and our heart is glad in Him. These two responses are parallel, in sync, working together to guide us in life, and to make us a blessing to others. May hope and joy be "our lines on the highway" to guide us today.