We are wrapping up this year and ready to take a few weeks break to rest and refresh before jumping into all that lies ahead. None of us know what 2021 will hold. After all, when 2020 kicked off, we were full of optimism and hope for the new decade. None of us could have foreseen all that would change in our lives or foreshadowed the sense of loss we would experience. I would bet that you also did not see how you were going to grow this year! We have tried to honestly share with you when we were down, frustrated, angry, fearful, and those moments when we found joy, happiness, and surprising depth of emotions through our blog. As we journeyed this year together, we hope you have seen Christ in a new way and experienced His love as you have never before.
I want to leave you with some scripture that has carried my family and me through this year. They are written on note cards and scattered around the house, written on sticky notes posted to my desk at home and the office I have barely seen in months, and even worn as temporary tattoos as a part of my desire to memorize scripture. At the beginning and the end of each day, scripture is where we will find the truth, guidance, comfort, and the courage to face each trial.
For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Romans 15:4
This has been a year of anxiety:
Casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, stay firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
1 Peter 5:7-9
At times, the future has looked really scary:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7
There have been times of discouragement where ministry seemed really hard:
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
1 Corinthians 15:58
There have been times when we could not look away:
For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the Holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit,” and, “The sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”
2 Peter 2:20-22
But there have also been times of encouragement:
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
John 10:10
There have been regular reminders of God’s plan for us:
Making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth.
Ephesians 1:9-10
Finally, there have been sweet reminders of God’s ultimate love for us:
The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in His love He will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.
Zephaniah 3:17
It is our prayer that God would continue to reveal Himself to us in all that is to come. Thank you for allowing us to come into your home and family this year. We are honored to be used by God to help you along your parenting journey. We can’t wait to see what 2021 will bring!
Blessings to you and your family!
