It’s hard to even know what to say as 2020 comes to a close.
2020 has been a year like no other, “unprecedented!”, as we have heard, ad nauseum. Social media the last few days has been full of people summarizing the good, bad, and horrible of the past year.
I’ve really enjoyed reading the posts that list lessons learned, priorities reset, and good things from 2020. It wasn’t all bad, even if it seems that way.
But even so, everyone seems reallllllly ready to say goodbye to 2020.
We are giddy with anticipation of this NEW YEAR.
We just know that 2021 will be better than 2020, because 2020 was NOT GOOD.
- One star.
- Would not recommend.
Why do we do this, place so much hope on the dawning of a New Year, when for all intents and purposes, the first part of 2021 will be pretty much just like the end of 2020?
It’s not like everything will magically right itself overnight, even though that would be awesome.
And just to put it out there: if 2021 would like to bestow overnight resolution to ALL.THE.THINGS, holy cow, please DO THIS.
I think our hope in each New Year, even THIS particular New Year, points to a pretty awesome characteristic of our human nature. One that doesn’t necessarily make good evolutionary sense, and doesn’t always even make practical sense.
But it is none-the-less awesome.
That human characteristic is our Perpetual Hope.
- Hope that defies logic.
- Belief that good things CAN and WILL come, even in the face of overwhelming odds stacked against those good things being realized.
- Faith in Better, coming just around the corner.
A New Year represents HOPE that the coming days, signified the world over by a tangible change in the date on the calendar, will be better.
A new year is like a line in the sand.
The old, “unprecedented” year, with all its mess, losses, confusion, challenges, grief, betrayal – the old year is on one side of that line.
And the New Year, with its shiny promise, clean slate, and basket full of our hopes and dreams wrapped up with a perfect bow – on the other.
The new year will arrive whether we, personally, step across that line or not. We could just sit there and watch, unengaged observers of the progression of time.
But for many, our hopefulness and anticipation propel us to take a running start, leap as high and far as we can, bicycling our legs and arms to go EVEN FARTHER, and land on the uncharted side full or hope and promise.
Hope in the middle of a struggle. A New Year represents a pristine, unblemished, never-been-experienced clean slate. It holds absolute potential, both for us as individuals and for the world as a whole.
Maybe this year will be awesome! It certainly could be.
I never want to give up hope. Even when the odds are stacked against it. Even if the first days or weeks or months or the New Year AREN’T perceptibly “better”, better days WILL come.
They always do, eventually.
The 1918 Spanish flu pandemic. World War II. The Black Death.
They all ended, after a time.
The Depression, the Dust Bowl, the Holocaust – they all ended, too.
Not soon enough, and with previously unimaginable tragedy and loss in their wake.
They didn’t magically end on the night that one year ended and a new year began.
But they eventually DID end, and better times returned.
Acknowledging that better times did come in no way minimizes the loss and pain and horror of those experiences. But a hopeful, forward-looking frame of mind does help us not get stuck in a bad place. Horror and hope can actually be part of the same landscape.
They ARE, must be, part of the same landscape, and we each get to choose which horizon we will focus on the most.
The challenges that 2020 brought will end too, hopefully in 2021.
But even if they DON’T end in 2021 – and we won’t know until we are sitting here a year from now anticipating 2022 – I still want to hang on to HOPE. Sometimes, that’s all we have. But it is enough, until better shows up.
This type of “even if it doesn’t pan out like I want it to” hope reminds me of a story in the book of Daniel in the Bible. When Daniel’s 3 friends were about to be thrown into a fiery furnace because they refused to bow down and worship a golden statue rather than worship their God, they held onto their hope, their faith, even though they didn’t know how things were going to turn out.
Here’s what they said to the king, when the king basically gave them a second chance to change their minds about the decision to not worship his golden idol:
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. 18 But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.”
So what ended up happening to Daniel’s 3 friends? You can read the details in Daniel chapter 3. It’s a pretty powerful story.
“Even if He doesn’t.”
Even if things don’t turn out the way I think they should, or WHEN I think they should.
“Right” – big picture “right” – may not be what we envision. Often, it isn’t.
But even if it isn’t – I will still hope and look for better days ahead.
Seriously, what’s the other option? To assume that things will always suck? That life sucks and then you die? What kind of life does that type of attitude allow you to live?
Without hope, without faith, what do we have? Not much other than existence, and endurance. Existence is fine, and I prefer it to not existing.
But mere existence seems pretty empty if that’s all you have.
Bleak.
On the other hand, existence fueled and animated by hope – that makes living worth the effort and time and experience.
So as we anticipate the arrival of 2021,
… as we open all our doors and windows tonight to shoo 2020 “out”,
… as we eat our black-eyed peas tomorrow to symbolically hope for good things to come in the year ahead,
… as we resolve to make some changes with the dawn of a brand New Year,
… or as we just move from one day to the next, not really making any specific goals or plans for the New Year –
… as we do these things, let’s focus on this Hope that, thankfully, springs eternal, and be glad that we humans, still believe in better days ahead.
The following passages are reminders of how hope, faith, help us through the tough times. Maybe you, like me, need to be reminded of these truths every so often. (editorial comment – I know “me” is grammatically incorrect there… I just don’t like how “I” sounds…)
Even if you don’t believe in God, or share my faith, see if the ideas in these passages aren’t helpful in keeping hope alive and perspective in its proper place.
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1)
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in faith so that you overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)
“Now hope that is seen is not hope. For …who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” (Romans 8:24b-25)
“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. (Romans 5:3-5)
“…but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint..” (Isaiah 40:31)
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. (Isaiah 55:8)
Like you, I’m hoping that 2021 will be full of awesome. But regardless, I will continue to hope and believe that good and better are still out there, and that we’ll find them.
Wishing all of you God’s blessings in 2021!
Rebecca
Peripheral Wisdom 