"and he began to teach them, saying: 'Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.'" -Matthew 5:3-5
"Pain is temporary. It may last for a minute, or an hour, or a day, or even a year. But eventually it will subside. And something else will take it's place." -Oz Pinoy
The new year has arrived, and there is plenty to be excited about! Resolutions. Diets. Commitments. You name it. It's a chance to start over and a chance for a fresh start.
It's also a chance to look back at what the year before brought. For me it was yet another year of change. I made a huge move to Texas (the one place I was SURE I'd never live) to work with some tremendous teenagers in Fort Worth! I left an amazing church family in Berea Friendship. I left some of my dearest friends and have made new ones. I tore my OTHER ACL. I've been tested, twisted, affirmed, questioned and come out on the other side a year wiser and a year older.
Everyone has a similar story. Every year is full of the greatest joys and the deepest disappointments. Some days bring the brightest smiles. Others carry with them unbearable tears. I think that's why we all look forward to the new year! It is a complete unknown, but full of possibility and wonder.
And maybe that's why resolutions are so popular. They are our chance to make the most of the possibilities and potential in a new year.
I've never been much for resolutions. Over the break I found a file my parents have kept of all the silly things from my childhood that only a parent could appreciate. In it was a project I did in 5th grade where I made some New Years resolutions. Number one? Everyone deserved to be defended by Ben Matlock (clearly I didn't understand the idea of a New Years resolution, but a kid can dream right?) This year I don't have a resolution as much as a prayer:
"Don't be afraid to be uncomfortable or
struggle. Don't be afraid to fail. Don't be afraid to have friends who
challenge you and are willing to tell you no. Don't be afraid to let God
be bigger than you can possibly imagine and not merely an agent for
what YOU want."
I must tell you that growing up in youth group in middle school and high school, one of my favorite sayings was, "That was totally a God thing!" or "God showed up!" If you've spent any time in Christian circles you know that this roughly translates to "Something really great just happened!" I became a pro at using this language.
It works the same way when we talk about blessings. We always say God has blessed us when great things happen, when unexpected successes arrive at our doors. When things are great it must be that God is showing up and blessing us.
But a funny thing happened the other day. I was reading through Matthew 5-7 (the Sermon on the Mount) and I was reminded of something unmistakeable. The very first thing Jesus says to his disciples once they are all together, his very first words to them as a group, are these: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted."
He TOTALLY flips it upside down! The LAST people we'd assume to be blessed are the FIRST Jesus talks about: the poor, the meek, the merciful, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Is it possible that what we think of as blessing the poor may in fact be the poor blessing us with their presence?
And when he's done listing these blessed people, he tells these disciples (who must be a little nervous they signed up for the wrong gig at this point), "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me."
WHAT?!?!?!
This isn't exactly the picture I had in mind from that picture bible I received in third grade. It's also not the standard picture of blessings I have, nor would most of us claim to be blessed in persecution.
Yet here we are. Jesus's first words to his disciples? "My path is not an easy one. It is a road filled with discomfort and pain. It won't always be safe. And in that you will be blessed with joy unimaginable and peace eternal."
Is it possible that we have limited the places "God shows up" to the places and times we are happy and content? Is it possible that we have completely misunderstood what it means to be blessed all these years? Is it possible that the truth of God's blessing is that he is with us in the eye of the storm and the depths of our despair?
My prayer for 2013 is that I would begin to glimpse this picture of who God is and who He blesses his children. I've searched and can't find where God promises he will bless us with a comfortable life full of smiles. No, I've come to think that the truth of God's love is found in the depths of our existence, in the promise of each day, in the joys and the tears. I'm convinced that the Father shows up in our greatest joys to celebrate with us and in our darkest hours to comfort us.
I've become convinced that EACH and EVERY moment is a "God moment." What I've come to believe is that our clearest glimpses of God's love and comfort come when we have nothing else to rely on. 2013 will surely be blessed. Every day I wake up to see the sun and breathe in the air it will be blessed. Hopefully I'll learn not to define the ways God can bless me.
May we all be blessed this year. But more than that, may we all learn to see the blessings that are already hear.
forever unfinished...
