2020 has a been an epic year of uncertainty. For many of us 2020 has been an uncomfortable revealing of inner perspectives that may have surprised us. Only but the oldest amongst us remember such uncertain times. The year started out with reports of a potential upcoming health crisis. By the 56th day of the year the stock market had plunged 34.5% from its starting point on January 1st. Those who had their life’s savings invested in retirement funds felt the fear of a 34% decrease in their finances. It would be almost four months before we would see it’s value return to the January 1St levels and as I write this it is currently 4.5% above its starting point. Oddly enough for many of us the first signs of trouble were the empty shelves in our local store where toilet paper once had its place. By the end of April many workers were receiving unexpected vacation time with full pay from unemployment insurance and in some cases, more pay than what their average check was. News articles began to warn of an impending financial crisis due to companies being shut down and not producing goods and services. Pastors found themselves in impossible situations. With tears running down their faces they spoke of trying to navigate what it looks like to honor the government and honor God while shepherding the people of God. They shared about the angry responses they received from congregants who believed they went too far and others who believed they had not gone far enough. Well intentioned people began to accuse those who held opinions that were different than theirs; of not caring for their neighbor or of living in fear. Some observers believed we were on the brink of a civil war. As the election neared its completion the divide seemed to widen even further with one side accusing the other side of being heathens and the other side returning the accusations. Husbands and wives found themselves with opposing opinions and marriages suffered greatly for it. As I listen to people, I hear that the tension of 2020 has been exhausting and filled with the stench of death. Churches are filled with tension, relationships are severely damaged, and marriages are crippled. People, who are created by God for relationships are now wounded and retreating into isolation because relating to people in this tension is simply too much. The cases of depression begin to soar.
My good friend and colleague Mel Eash is known to say “The reality of who one is, is revealed by what they do when they do not know what to do.” If nothing else, 2020 was certainly a year of revealing. Suddenly the mantra of the past 20 years of no discrimination and accepting each one for their individualist point of view came to a sudden demise. Many of us were faced with the uncomfortable revelation of “what I do when I don’t know what to do”. For some, the revelations of our inner selves were quite shocking. These revelations should raise many questions for us. Where have I placed my trust for the future? In my financial security? In a church who believes exactly as I do? In an America as I have always known it? I would suggest our responses have revealed where we believe the primary war to be and where we have truly placed our trust for our future. Paul in Ephesians 6:12 writes, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” In John 8:44b, Jesus describes the mastermind behind that war as “He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth,” and Solomon tells us in Proverbs 18:21 that “Death and life are in the power of the tongue”. Could it be that the most important war we wage is the war of our words when we find ourselves in disagreement with a spouse, friend, colleague, or neighbor?
Perhaps February 2021, a month known for love and romance, is the most appropriate time for us to reflect on where we fought our battle in 2020. Did we resort to a flesh and blood battle where we used words to kill and destroy those around us, those we disagreed with? Did we see the most important battle during 2020? Did we recognize the enemy’s work to destroy a nation, relationships, churches, and ultimately homes through the power of divisiveness? Can we recognize which temporal things we have misplaced our trust in rather than engaging in the things of God; such as, relationships, love, mercy for those we disagree with, and a gentle answer? Winning this battle will have lasting effects now and into eternity. When the prophet Isaiah prophesied of the coming Messiah in Isaiah 61, he proclaimed that if we put our trust in Him we would be called Oaks of Righteousness, we would find healing for brokenness, our mourning would be replaced with joy, and a faint spirit will given a coat of praise. In Jeramiah 17:7-8 it says that when we place our trust in the ways of God we become “like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
Where did you place your trust in 2020 and where will you place your trust in 2021? The answer to these questions will determine if you will be called an Oak of Righteousness.
Garrett Martin
Originally published in the Grace Haven newsletter in February of 2021
The Brew 