Many of us think of hope as something we’re waiting for—something that will come if circumstances improve or if life settles down. But the story of the road to Emmaus shows something different: the presence of Christ is already with us, even when we don’t recognize it. The two disciples are discouraged, confused, and trying to make sense of what has happened, and all along Jesus is walking beside them. This first week invites us to reconsider where hope actually begins. It begins with learning to notice that God is not absent from our lives or our world. The call is to begin paying attention again—to look at our lives, our relationships, and even our struggles with the possibility that Christ is already present and at work here.
