Breaking the Status Quo: A Hope That Persists

Humans love routine. Even as infants, our minds and bodies are like  “pattern detectors,” finding solace in the things that stay the same. Research tells us that routines in sleep, meals, and habits nourish our growth as children. But as we grow, the same routines that once served us can start to confine us, holding us back from something new.

It’s not just our personal routines—it's the larger patterns that shape our communities. We live in a world structured by systems and status quo that shape how we live together. These patterns in a sense are helpful, but they can also begin to feel immovable. The status quo becomes a force unto itself, convincing us that change is not only difficult—it is impossible. But here is the truth we need to hear: God sent Jesus to change the status quo. And if we forget this, and end up making idols of our own routines, we might begin worshiping the comfort of the familiar over the baby Jesus sent to renew our world.

Christ’s coming into the world is the great proclamation of hope. And as we enter Advent, the season of hope, we must ask: What does it mean to hope in a broken world? Hope is not for the faint of heart. It is not a shallow optimism or wishful thinking. Emily Dickinson said hope “sings the tune without the words” and “never stops at all.” Hope is an unshakable force that withstands the fiercest storms. Hope is not about clinging to the comfortable or the predictable—it presses forward even when the way ahead is unclear.

Look at Daniel in the lion’s den. Faced with unjust laws and certain death, Daniel chose faith over fear. He didn’t resist or run—he trusted. And when he stepped into the lions' den, he knew God was with him. Hope doesn’t avoid hardship; it steps into it, trusting that God’s presence will meet us there. Like Daniel, we are called to break free from the norms that divide us. The status quo tells us to fear, judge, and mistrust. But the hope of Christ calls us to something better: to love, to unite, to heal.

This Advent, let us rise and embody the hope we speak of. Christ entered a fractured world with the promise of God’s presence. Jesus came to shake the foundations of the world. To offer hope for all people. Let us face our own “lion’s dens” with boldness. Let us act with courage, knowing that God is with us. Together, with Christ’s love as our guide, we can reflect a hope in Christ that is so fierce, so resilient, that it will not only survive in the brokenness—it will transform the world. Amen.