Good grief, we’re doing it all over again. It’s the same thing we did only 12 months ago (and 12 months before that, and again 12 months before that), so I guess it shouldn’t really surprise me. But lately, it just feels less appropriate than usual.
If memory serves me, it was indeed about this time last year that we were all wishing one another a “Happy New Year”. Nonetheless, for a great number of people across the globe, 2020 ended up being, perhaps, the most difficult, frustrating, and (quite frankly) sad year of their entire life. And yet, in denial of its impotence, we’re offering each other the same tired expression once again this year.
The Year in Review
The facts are hard to ignore: One single virus was responsible for nearly 2 million funerals worldwide. The atmosphere of our own country was polluted with such political drama, citizens from coast to coast are still gasping for cleaner air. Racial tensions and riots burned through what was left of the thin thread that barely held a number of cities and communities together.
We were isolated from each other, and then fed a continual narrative of death & division. Lies & lawsuits are now the norm. Law enforcement has become criminal. The world is a morgue.
A year that was supposed to be ‘happy’ has left most of us feeling hopeless…
The New Normal
A lot of people are saying that we’ll never go back to the way things used to be. “This is the new normal” they say; “It’ll never be the same again” they say. Nothing can undo what’s been done, not even a vaccination.
Far from “happy”, the last 12 months have at least proven to be transitional. Everything from the governing color in the oval office to the way we celebrate holidays is different now. Very different.
And here we are, only 365 days later, with very limited options. Two really. We can either stay with the mission of Christ Almighty, or we can sit around and lament the things we’ve lost in 2020.
Which one will it be?
Happy, or Hopeless?
Unexpected changes seem to upset some people more than others.
If we’re prudent, we’ll allow the events of the last year call into question our ability to cope with transition at all. Your attitude and management of life alterations can either reveal spiritual soundness or spiritual instability. And history shows that it’s Christ’s disciples who prove themselves most adept at embracing transitional situations.
Certainly the most stark example comes from the original Disciples themselves as they transitioned from a life lived under the Law of Moses, to one lived by grace, apart from the Law. A hard transition for everybody, but only the Disciples of Christ survived it. A fact that can be largely attributed to their preparation. The sacrificial investments they’d made and the training they’d received paid off when it was most needed.
Others, however, didn’t fare so well. Why? Because unlike the Disciples who’d been following Christ with pure intentions, the Pharisees, for example, had been following Him with impure ones. In them, Jesus only stirred up latent feelings of jealousy, anger, and hatred. They demanded that their lives remain undisturbed, and couldn’t tolerate what God was forcing them to face, so, instead of making the change, they cracked under the pressure and got buried in sin.
Not everyone comes through times of transition with greater spiritual soundness than when it began. And whether we like it or not, both of these groups find their counterpart in Believers’ Church.
Who Are You?
It’s time to evaluate yourself. Was 2020 a success for you, or a failure? Are you strengthening or weakening? Did you transition well, beloved disciple, or did you falter? Have you made good use of the things you’ve learned, dear student? Have you put to wise use all the training you’ve received thus far, good soldier?
If we’ve learned anything in 2020, it’s that we have no clue as to what’s coming next. We may anticipate a better year than last, and we may wish for a ‘happy’ one like always, but we mustn’t let ourselves forget, “A man’s heart plans his way, but the LORD determines his steps” (Pr.16:9). God has already decided what 2021 is going to look like for you and me. Our only job is to be ready for it.
The question is not whether tomorrow will bring blessing or adversity, but whether we’re prepared to accept either one. And if we can assume anything, it’s that the coming year will include much of both. We’ll have to wait and see.
Happy New Year…