I don’t think any of us were ready for the curveball that is 2020. I know I wasn’t! As I sit here and reflect on the first half of the year, it’s all I can do not to just throw up my hands and sigh. I mean since January it’s been one crazy event after another. First, Kobe, Gianna and 7 others die tragically in a helicopter accident. (This just so happened to be my mother’s birthday.) Then, COVID-19 reared its ugly head, locking us all indoors and putting many in financial strain. And just when we were starting to find some sort of peace by making Tik Tok videos and baking banana bread, the unjust murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and countless other victims at the hands of police reminded us that 2020 is far from over. Sprinkle in the murder hornets, Australian bush fires, and Arctic Circle oil spill and every passing day introduces a new level of the Jumanji game we are living through.
With all of the negativity that 2020 seems to have brought, it can be easy to feel discouraged. Being a Christian during this moment is especially tough. I’ve had many conversations with friends, some fellow Christians and some not, wondering why God would allow such madness to take place. We shared how hard it is to keep the faith and stay the course in the midst of adversity. One particular conversation made me reflect on the story of Jesus sleeping in the midst of a storm (Mark 4:35-39). His disciples were freaking out as the water beat against the boat and filled the bottom. While they tried their best to keep from drowning, where was Jesus? In the stern of the boat catching some zzzs. The disciples went to him and were like “Yo, Jesus we are about to die over here. Don’t you even care?” Jesus got up, turned to the winds and waves and said “Peace, be still.” Immediately, everything was calm. Jesus then turned to his disciples and condemned them for their lack of faith.
2020 has been much like that bible passage. Chaos is all around us and it can seem like God is off taking a nap somewhere. What I have tried to remind myself and want to remind you is that God is with us. Even when the winds and waves knock against us, we are children of a God who with a single word can make it all cease. And let us not think that our suffering is in vain. No, according to His word, it has a purpose.
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
James 1: 2-4
2020 hasn’t been easy and I’ll bet money that there’s a few more Jumanji levels to go through before we make it to the other side. But take heart and delight with me in knowing that God is with us through it all. As you reflect on your own life during the last few months, spend some time in prayer then write a list of the ways in which God has blessed you. I promise you’ll realize He was doing far more than taking a nap.
