Good riddance 2020??
It has been a while since my last blog post. Life has been full, and I'm not going to try and catch up, but I do feel like sharing a few thoughts. As we approached the end of 2020, I repeatedly heard the general sentiment that 2020 was terrible and it is good that it is over. It was a difficult year, and whether we look at Coronavirus, politics, the economy, or so many other things, I think that we have all been touched by fear, loss, and pain. 2020 was tough, and in all likelihood, the things that made 2020 tough are still with us in many ways.
In my classes at JBU, we spend time talking about the Christian worldview. Mankind was created in God's image, but we live in a broken world that has been afflicted by sin and rebellion. As Christians, we are called to be redeemers, to push back on the brokenness in all sectors of God's creation. Whether that is disease, character, exploitation, poverty, war, human trafficking, or so much more, God has called us to do what scripture calls the two greatest commandments: to love God and love our neighbor. These are not things to do when it is convenient or when it falls within certain geographical, religious, political, social, or racial boundaries. These are sweeping statements, backed up by scriptural examples, that make up part of God's general calling to mankind to be an army of redeemers who are attempting to make a broken world more like what God intended it to be.
As we seek to be agents of redemption who love God and neighbor, we can be sure of certain things. God is active in our world today. We are not alone in the work that we do. He will never leave us or forsake us. We are part of a supernatural, spiritual battle. The Christian faith is a "big tent" that includes every tribe, nation, and tongue. God's desire for us as expressed in the prayer of Jesus in the garden was that we would "be one" as Jesus and the Father are one. Regardless of your specific calling, we are called to be redeemers, peacemakers, and speakers of truth who place no other god, agenda, philosophy, or purpose above the God of the universe.
If God gives me life, I will remember 2020 very vividly, and I will remember the challenges, the losses, and the pain. But I will also remember that 2020 was a year when God did many great things, when He never abandoned us, when He opened new doors of opportunity, and when He taught me many things. There are people and things we have all lost, but there is much we have learned, and I would like to think that I am stronger now. It is always good to leave pain behind, but I am thankful for 2020 and for God's grace and faithfulness as we have worked to be redeemers in a world so clearly broken. So, "thank you, Lord," for your grace and presence in our lives each day.
So, I know that we will remember 2020 as a tough year, but I pray we will also recognize it as a year that God did some pretty amazing things through his people. And THAT I hope we do not forget
