Do you remember way back in January, I preached a series entitled, “2020 Vision?” We looked with great joy and anticipation at all of the beautiful things we were going to accomplish in the year.
Doesn’t it feel like January was 36 months ago and not 11-ish?
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that 2020 was the worst year on record for quite a long time. Wildfires, a polarizing election cycle, and a global pandemic that has killed 1.4 million, infected 58.7 million, and unemployed 495 million people have put shattered all anticipatory plans.
I don't want to put it this way, but I’m sure you will agree, I'm not too fond of this year. It’s awful. It was supposed to be the year of great things or at least things we could see with perfect vision.
But instead, this has been a year of loss, tragedy, uncertainty, anger, resentment, distrust, and hopelessness.
And now we enter into the season of Christmas. Trees, lights, wreaths, and gifts, I don’t know if I am in the mood for it. Are you?
But maybe we need Christmas now more than ever. Perhaps we need this season to recenter our lives around hope amid the gloom, joy within sorrow, faith during uncertainty, and love within strife.
This Sunday, as we begin the Advent season, we start a new series entitled Noël: Hope for All Who Experienced 2020.
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