The sounds of cheers, hope, and relief as the clock ticks down to the final seconds of 2020. There is a lot of excitement to ending a year that deserves the title of: "worst year". As the last day of 2020 is dwindling down, I have had a lot of time to look back and dwell on the past 364 days.
While a lot would say this has been a year of nothing but hurt, sickness, and loss... I have viewed it as a year of discovery, transformation, and newness. I am not oblivious to the obvious pain that our world has gone through this past year, however I also am not oblivious to the power that shines when the world seems to be filled in darkness.
God is constantly moving, and that includes times when we feel like He is being stagnant. One thing I have noticed this year over others, is the subject of time. At the beginning of 2020 we were forced to pause everything and "social distance". Through that time, for an extrovert like me, I struggled. For weeks I felt alone, upset, and confused. However, I also found that the pause helped me in numerous ways.
When school was occurring, I lacked the time to spend with my family, I lacked alone time to be with God, and I lacked the time to just rest. Quarantine gave me all of this time to reprioritize and focus on what really matters. The world in 2020 was filled with noise whether it be COVID, social distance, race relations, politics, unemployment, etc... But when is the last time you just paused and shut out the noise and just listened? When is the last time you took a drive and did not remove the silence by filling your car up with a conversation, or even with music? We as humans are consumed by noise and never allow us enough time to be in the silence. Think about it... I bet you the only time you experience true silence is when you go to sleep and even then you are unconscious.
I decided in order to not be a hypocrite and write this from a different angle, I am in complete silence... it is uncomfortable for me at first, and it feels different but refreshing. I pray that as I move forward to 2021 that I keep the priority of seeking silence. Sometimes when God communicates to us the Spirit can have a silent whisper. Often times, we are too consumed by the noise and distractions around us that we lose sight on what He is trying to tell us and instead of blaming the noise we complain that God is not listening.
One out of many lessons I have learned this past year is that God is always there. This is a world of inconsistencies, but God is the only consistent One. Our life is not full despite of all the disappointments, it is full because of them. Sometimes God calls us to slow down and I believe that 2020 was a year to slow down.
Moving forward to 2021, I am left thankful for the hardships of 2020. I am left stronger, refilled, and recharged to face another year where God's sovereignty will continue to shine. If you are reading this and you have experienced loss this past year, I am so sorry. If you are reading this and you have experienced unemployment this past year, I am so sorry. If you got COVID and suffered greatly from it, I am so sorry. But you, are the one I am writing to most. Your loss, pain, and sickness has not gone unnoticed. As a church, I hurt with you, believe me when I say that. But with you on my heart and in my mind, I come to you and remind you of how strong you are. You are a soldier for the Kingdom of God, and no one can take your armor away. You are clothed with the strength of Jesus Christ, and your identity is marked as "child of God". I am proud of you and your ability to face your struggles and realize they are real, but so is your God. You are not defined by what you have gone through, instead you are defined by who brought you out of what you went through.
I am praying for you in this new year. Please do not lose sight on giving you time to rest. Allow yourself to sit in the silence and spend quality time with the Lord. Allow Him to be heard by you. I love you. Happy New Year!
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