In this first week of Advent, we turn our hearts toward hope, remembering that God’s people have always been a people who wait together. Drawing from Isaiah 9:2-7, Dean reflects on a world that once walked in darkness and the promise of a great light: Christ, our coming King. And as Romans 15:12-13 reminds us, this hope is not wishful thinking, but a confident expectation rooted in God’s faithfulness. Advent teaches us that hope grows strongest in community; we are “better together” when we lift one another’s eyes toward the Savior who keeps every promise and turns our waiting into worship.