December 31. A day to say goodbye to the old and to welcome the new. An opportunity to get a fresh start…on a diet, on an exercise plan, on establishing good habits (or breaking old ones). Like most of the world, I am quite happy to say goodbye to 2020. I am sure few, if any, of us have made it through this year unscathed. For me, I have faced occasional isolation from family members. In fact, my 96 year old grandmother-in-law is currently isolated in a long-term care facility. We haven’t been able to see her in person since March. In March, I was forced to stop attending in-person church. In March, I had to adapt to teaching in a virtual world. In May, I had to watch as my seniors lost all of their “lasts”- the last month, the last Monday, the last school lunch, the last high school final, the last walk through those familiar hallways, the last goodbye- all milestones in the life of a teenager, global pandemic or not. In June, I was able to return to church (a privilege I will not take for granted again). In September I returned to school in person, but with a set of “new normal” guidelines. In December, my students went remote again. Through it all, my family and I have watched as some lost loved ones, some lost their businesses, and some lost even more.
Whatever 2020 has put you through, I have some perspective straight from God’s word. David praises God in Psalm 65:11, saying, “You crown the year with Your goodness.” Strong’s Concordance defines crown as a verb meaning “to crown,” while Google dictionary defines crown as “to ceremonially place a crown on the head of (someone) to invest them as a monarch” or “to rest on or form the top of.” To me, this immediately creates the image of an ice cream sundae with a cherry on top. Can you wrap your mind around the idea of 2020 being an ice cream sundae with a cherry on top? Probably not! To be honest, I struggle with that image as well. Nevertheless, God’s word says that He crowns the year with His goodness, regardless of whether we choose to see it that way or not.
In Prince Hamlet’s words, “Therein lies the rub” (the main difficulty). We have to choose how we look back at 2020; we have to choose what eyes we will use. Whenever I say that, I find myself thinking of Mr. Potato Head with his cache of eyeballs stored in his booty, each waiting for the right occasion. 😂 Like Mr. Potato Head, we can reach into our own eyeball cache and pull out our “2020 Eyes, ” choosing to see this year as a horrendous year full of every bad thing imaginable (and for many of us, that is the “truth”). Or we can reach into that same eyeball cache and pull out our “Faith Eyes,” choosing instead to look at 2020 through the eyes of an unshakeable faith in God, in His word, in His goodness. For me, God’s word is the end of the story. If His word says it is so, then it is so. Does that make it easy to believe or grasp? Ummm NO. Make that a resounding NO. But does my struggle to believe make it any less true? NO. So here’s the challenge….In looking back and acknowledging the end of 2020, can you find God’s goodness? Can you find God? Trust me, He was there… In the sunrise. In the sunset. In the breeze. On the mountain. In the valley. In the hospital. In the nursing home. In the school. He was always there. Can you see Him?
One final thought before 2020 utters its last gasp…Endings and beginnings go hand in hand. 2020 is ending, yes. But 2021 is only a day away. And God’s word is still speaking to us. “He crowns the year with His goodness.” This is written in present tense…He crowns. 2021 is already crowned with His goodness. He has already put the cherry on top, in advance, before it even begins. Can you see it? Can you imagine it? And all you need to do is put on your faith glasses and look for his goodness as you step into this new year. It’s there, I promise you. God’s word says it is.