“The wolf lives with the lamb, the panther lies down with the kid, calf and lion cub feed together with a little boy to lead them. The cow and the bear make friends, their young lie down together.”  ~Isaiah 11:4-6

The film ‘Cast Away’ featuring Tom Hanks was very popular. There is a similar story told about the only survivor of a shipwreck who got washed up on a small uninhabited island. He prayed constantly to God to rescue him and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed to be coming. Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements and to store his few possessions.

But then one day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames and the smoke rolling up to the sky. The worst had happened and everything was lost. He was stung with grief and anger. “God how could you do this to me”, he cried.

Exhausted with his anger he fell asleep on the beach, only to be awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching. It had come to rescue him. “How did you know I was here?” asked the weary man of his rescuers. “We saw your smoke signal.” they replied

There is a message here for all of us too on our journey through Advent and as we count down the days to Christmas. It is easy to get discouraged when things are not going well. The message of Advent is to never lose hope. Isaiah who wrote just over 2,700 years ago, still had the same problems that we have today. He sensed and felt the unease of people, who were tired, without hope and had given up. He wrote some beautiful scripture pieces to remind them of the presence of light, hope and new beginnings. These came to be with the arrival of Jesus at Christmas. For Isaiah he believed that the impossible can become possible.

The message of Advent is to know that God is with us, that there is light to be found in our dark world, that there is hope even when all seems lost and that our lives do have purpose and meaning.