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How God Wired Our Brains for Advent Hope: Why Anticipation Fuels Our Faith · Your Hope-Filled Perspective with Dr. Michelle Bengtson podcast

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  Speaker 1: Life Audio. Have you ever noticed that sometimes the waiting
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  Speaker 1: feels almost better than the having a child, counting down
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  Speaker 1: the days until Christmas morning, the thrill of planning a vacation,
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  Speaker 1: even the little rush when you hear your phone buzz
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  Speaker 1: with a new message. That's anticipation at work. But what
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  Speaker 1: if I told you that the very chemical in your
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  Speaker 1: brain that makes anticipation so powerful was actually designed by
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  Speaker 1: God to teach us something about advent. Today we're going
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  Speaker 1: to be talking about dopamine, anticipation and the kind of
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  Speaker 1: holy hope that not only prepares us for Christmas, but
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  Speaker 1: points us to the greater joy of Christ's return. Welcome
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  Speaker 1: to your hope filled perspective with doctor Michelle bankson where
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  Speaker 1: it's always our goal to restore hope, renew minds, and
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  Speaker 1: empower listeners to live in your God given identity. I'm
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  Speaker 1: always thrilled when you decide to spend a few minutes
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  Speaker 1: of your week with us. Today, we're going to be
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  Speaker 1: talking about God wired our brains for advent, hope, and
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  Speaker 1: why anticipation fuels our faith. That's the conversation we'll dive
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  Speaker 1: into right after this brief word from our sponsor. As
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  Speaker 1: we step into this Advent season, I want to share
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  Speaker 1: something that's been on my heart, how anticipation affects our
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  Speaker 1: brain chemistry, our spiritual lives, and even the way we
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  Speaker 1: approach hope. Specifically, I want us to consider the beautiful
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  Speaker 1: connection between anticipation, dopamine, and advent hope. Did you know
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  Speaker 1: that your brain starts celebrating before the party even begins.
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  Speaker 1: That's right, long before you open the gift, taste the dessert,
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  Speaker 1: or hug the loved one, your brain is already released dopamine,
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  Speaker 1: the chemical of anticipation. But here's the deeper truth. God
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  Speaker 1: wired us that way on purpose. Advent is the season
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  Speaker 1: where science and faith collide, inviting us to see how
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  Speaker 1: holy anticipation points our hearts beyond the moment to the eternal.
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  Speaker 1: In this episode of Your Hope Filled Perspective, you'll learn
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  Speaker 1: how your brain chemistry mirrors the Biblical call to wait
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  Speaker 1: with joyful hope. For this episode, I just want us
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  Speaker 1: to reflect for a moment on Romans eight, verses twenty
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  Speaker 1: four through twenty five, that says, for in this hope
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  Speaker 1: we were saved, but hope that is seen is no
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  Speaker 1: hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have.
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  Speaker 1: But if we hope for what we do not yet have,
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  Speaker 1: we wait for it patiently. Friends, let's start the conversation
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  Speaker 1: talking about anticipation. What does it mean. Anticipation is the
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  Speaker 1: act of looking forward to something. It's more than just waiting.
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  Speaker 1: It's waiting with expectancy. It's that feeling when you know
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  Speaker 1: something is coming and you start to prepare for it
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  Speaker 1: in your heart, in your mind, and sometimes even in
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  Speaker 1: your body. Think about a child waiting for Christmas morning.
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  Speaker 1: They might count down the days, peek under the tree,
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  Speaker 1: maybe even have trouble falling asleep on Christmas Eve. That's anticipation.
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  Speaker 1: Anticipation can be both positive and negative. We can anticipate
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  Speaker 1: a joyful event like a wedding, the birth of a child,
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  Speaker 1: or a holiday gathering. Or we can anticipate something difficult,
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  Speaker 1: like a doctor's appointment or a hard conversation. But here's
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  Speaker 1: the key. Anticipation changes the way we think, feel, and
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  Speaker 1: behave even before the actual event takes place. Now, let's
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  Speaker 1: bring in a bit of brain science. You've probably heard
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  Speaker 1: of the chemical called dopamine. It's often referred to as
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  Speaker 1: the feel good chemical, but that's not entirely accurate. Dopamine
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  Speaker 1: isn't about pleasure itself. It's about the anticipation of pleasure.
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  Speaker 1: When our brains release dopamine, it motivates us to pursue something.
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  Speaker 1: It's tied to the reward system in our brains. For example,
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  Speaker 1: when you anticipate a delicious meal, your brain releases dopamine,
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  Speaker 1: not when you're eating the food, but when you think
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  Speaker 1: about eating it. My husband and I have a favorite restaurant.
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  Speaker 1: It's usually the restaurant that we choose to go to
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  Speaker 1: to celebrate special occasions like a birthday or an anniversary.
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  Speaker 1: He and I can both tell you what our favorite
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  Speaker 1: dishes are on that menu. But I can also tell
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  Speaker 1: you that when I know that we're going to go,
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  Speaker 1: I start in anticipating ordering one of my favorite dishes
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  Speaker 1: and how good it's going to taste, and how I'm
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  Speaker 1: going to feel when the meal is over. That's the
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  Speaker 1: positive aspect of anticipation. Dopamine helps us focus, It motivates
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  Speaker 1: us to take action, and it gives us energy to
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  Speaker 1: pursue what we expect will be rewarding. Here's another example.
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  Speaker 1: Have you ever noticed that in planning a vacation it
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  Speaker 1: can be almost almost as enjoyable as the vacation itself.
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  Speaker 1: That's because anticipation through the relief of dopamine creates joy, motivation,
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  Speaker 1: and excitement. When my children were younger and we'd have
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  Speaker 1: a vacation planned, I can't tell you how many nights
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  Speaker 1: we would sit around the dinner table and ask the question,
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  Speaker 1: what are you most looking forward to on vacation, and
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  Speaker 1: whether it was hunting for shark's teeth on the beach,
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  Speaker 1: or going whale watching, or hiking a waterfall or playing
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  Speaker 1: games after dinner, we all had our responses of what
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  Speaker 1: we were looking forward to, so that by the time
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  Speaker 1: the real vacation got there, we still had things to enjoy,
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  Speaker 1: but we had been already enjoying the anticipation of the event.
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  Speaker 1: Now here's where it gets interesting. When we lack healthy anticipation,
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  Speaker 1: when we don't have things to look forward to, dopamine
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  Speaker 1: levels can drop, leading to discouragement, low motivation, and sometimes
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  Speaker 1: even depression. But God, in his wisdom, created us with
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  Speaker 1: this system of anticipation for a reason. He designed our
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  Speaker 1: brains to look forward, to seek reward, to long for
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  Speaker 1: something beyond the present moment. Friends, We're going to take
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  Speaker 1: a real short break for a word from our sponsor.
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  Speaker 1: But I want you to stick with us because we're
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  Speaker 1: going to continue the conversation about how God wired our
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  Speaker 1: brains for hope. We'll dive into that right after this
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  Speaker 1: brief word. Welcome back. We're having a conversation today about anticipation, dopamine,
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  Speaker 1: and the hope of Advent. Now, this is where the
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  Speaker 1: conversation turns to advent. Advent is a season of holy anticipation.
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  Speaker 1: For centuries, Christians have marked the four weeks before Christmas
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  Speaker 1: as a time of preparation, reflection, and expectation. We look
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  Speaker 1: back and we remember the long anticipation of Israel waiting
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  Speaker 1: for the promised Messiah, and as believers, we look forward
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  Speaker 1: in holy anticipation of Christ's second coming. Advent teaches us
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  Speaker 1: not to rush through waiting, but to act, actually savor it,
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  Speaker 1: to sit in it, to let it shape our hearts.
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  Speaker 1: In the same way that dopamine motivates us to move
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  Speaker 1: forward towards something good, Advent helps motivate us to move
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  Speaker 1: towards God's promises. Think about Simeon and Anna in Luke
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  Speaker 1: chapter two. They spent their lives anticipating the Messiah, the
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  Speaker 1: Holy Spirit had revealed to Simeon that he would not
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  Speaker 1: he would not die before seeing the Lord's Christ. Imagine
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  Speaker 1: the daily anticipation he must have lived with. And then
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  Speaker 1: one day he helped the baby Jesus in his arms
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  Speaker 1: and declared, my eyes have seen your salvation. That's the
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  Speaker 1: fulfillment of holy anticipation. And yet we too live in
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  Speaker 1: a state of anticipation. We celebrate Jesus's birth, yes, but
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  Speaker 1: we also anticipate his return. That's what Adds reminds us.
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  Speaker 1: We live between the already and the not yet. Jesus
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  Speaker 1: has come and Jesus is coming again. Here's the challenge.
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  Speaker 1: In our culture, anticipation often gets hijacked. We anticipate Amazon packages,
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  Speaker 1: text message replies, or the next social media notification. Those
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  Speaker 1: things give us little dopamine hits. But friends, you know
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  Speaker 1: as well as I do, they don't satisfy our souls.
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  Speaker 1: If we're not careful, we train our brains to anticipate
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  Speaker 1: the wrong things, things that don't last, things that don't
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  Speaker 1: and can't fulfill us. But Advent invites us to retrain
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  Speaker 1: our anticipation. Instead of craving fleeting rewards, we can learn
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  Speaker 1: to anticipate eternal hope. So let's ask ourselves what am
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  Speaker 1: I anticipating most right now? Is is it something that's
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  Speaker 1: temporary or is it something eternal? And how can I
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  Speaker 1: align my anticipation with God's promises? Romans eight Versus twenty
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  Speaker 1: four through twenty five says, for in this hope we
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  Speaker 1: were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope
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  Speaker 1: at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But
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  Speaker 1: if we hope for what we do not yet have,
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  Speaker 1: we wait for it patiently. And that, my friend, is
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  Speaker 1: the essence of anticipation. It is waiting with patients, and
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  Speaker 1: it is grounded and help. We're going to take a
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  Speaker 1: brief break for a word from our sponsor, but when
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  Speaker 1: we return, we're going to talk about practical ways to
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  Speaker 1: cultivate holy anticipation. We'll be right back. So I want
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  Speaker 1: to turn our conversation now towards practical ways to cultivate
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  Speaker 1: holy anticipation. So how do we live this out? How
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  Speaker 1: do we use what we know about dopamine and anticipation
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  Speaker 1: to deepen our advent hope. Let me suggest a few
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  Speaker 1: practical steps. Number one would be to build rhythms of anticipation.
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  Speaker 1: Consider lighting an advent candle each week, read the scriptures
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  Speaker 1: the point to Christ's coming. These small practices create anticipation,
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  Speaker 1: and they remind you of brain and your spirit of
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  Speaker 1: the greater hope that's to come. Number two, practice gratitude
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  Speaker 1: in the waiting. Waiting is hard, but each time you
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  Speaker 1: feel anticipation rising, whether for a holiday gathering or even
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  Speaker 1: for your morning coffee, use it as a cue to
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  Speaker 1: thank God for something eternal. Because we know and science
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  Speaker 1: has shown the gratitude shifts dopamine towards holy anticipation. Number three.
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  Speaker 1: Anchor your anticipation in God's promises. Consider writing down verses
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  Speaker 1: about Christ's return. For example, John fourteen, Verse three says
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  Speaker 1: is Jesus talking and he says I will come back
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  Speaker 1: and take you with me. So let those promises fuel
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  Speaker 1: your waiting. Number four consider fasting from empty anticipations. Maybe
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  Speaker 1: that means stepping back from constant scrolling or instant gratification.
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  Speaker 1: Fasting helps retrain our brains to anticipate what truly matters.
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  Speaker 1: And my fifth suggestion would be to invite others into
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  Speaker 1: your anticipation. When we invite others into our anticipation, it's
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  Speaker 1: much like just as Israel anticipated the Messiah together. We
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  Speaker 1: are called to wait together. So consider sharing your advent
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  Speaker 1: reflections with a friend or a family member around the
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  Speaker 1: dinner table and encourage one another with the hope of
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  Speaker 1: Christ's return. When we put this all together, here's what
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  Speaker 1: we see. First, neuroscience shows us that anticipation releases dopamine,
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  Speaker 1: motivating us to move towards something good. Second, scripture shows
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  Speaker 1: us that God designed us to live in anticipation of
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  Speaker 1: his promises. And third, Advent reminds us to direct our
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  Speaker 1: anticipation toward Christ, his birth, his presence in our lives today,
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  Speaker 1: and his return. When we align our brain's natural anticipation
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  Speaker 1: system with God's eternal hope, we experience deeper joy, stronger faith,
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  Speaker 1: and renewed strength to endure those long seasons of waiting. Friend,
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  Speaker 1: whatever you're anticipating right now, I encourage you to lift
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  Speaker 1: it before the Lord. Maybe you're anticipating something wonderful, or
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  Speaker 1: maybe you're anticipating something hard. Either way, God meets us
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  Speaker 1: in our waiting as we journey through advent. Let's allow
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  Speaker 1: anticipation to become not a source of stress or distraction,
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  Speaker 1: but a holy reminder that our ultimate hope is in Christ.
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  Speaker 1: Would you pray with me, Heavenly Father, thank you for
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  Speaker 1: designing our minds and our hearts to anticipate. Thank you
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  Speaker 1: for sending Jesus the fulfillment of centuries of anticipation, and
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  Speaker 1: thank you for the promise that he will come again.
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  Speaker 1: Help us, Lord to direct our anticipation toward what is
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  Speaker 1: eternal and true. Strengthen us in those seasons of waiting,
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  Speaker 1: and fill us with hope as we remember that you
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  Speaker 1: are faithful to every promise in Jesus name. Amen, Friend,
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  Speaker 1: thank you for joining me on this episode of your
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  Speaker 1: hope filled perspective. If this conversation encourage you, would you
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  Speaker 1: consider sharing it with a friend who might also need
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  Speaker 1: a reminder of the hope that we have in Christ.
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  Speaker 1: As we move forward through this advent season, may you
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  Speaker 1: live with holy anticipation, not just for the joys of Christmas,
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  Speaker 1: but for the greater joy of Christ's return. Until we're
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  Speaker 1: together next time. I'm doctor Michelle Bankson, and it is
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  Speaker 1: my prayer that you live today with the hope of
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  Speaker 1: His promises filling your heart. My prayer that you will
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