By Brian McCrorie
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”
So wrote Charles Dickens at the beginning of his classic A Tale of Two Cities. Read those opening lines again. Do they sound a bit like 2021? Maybe a LOT like 2021?
I know a number of people who believe this is certainly the worst of times. The virus. The vaccine. The elections. The race riots. The record number of homicides. Another school shooting.
As a pastor, I have often felt helpless over the last two years as members of my church family suffered in solitude. No visitors. I still have dear ones in the hospital right now. Today. Some of the sweetest people you have ever met are wondering if they will ever get their health back to what it was.
And now, it’s October and cold and dark and raining. Feels like we are in a dense fog that refuses to lift. Many are depressed. No food on the grocery shelves. Waiting for hours to get into that favorite restaurant because it is understaffed. Everyone is hiring, and no one is getting hired. Some are making more money on unemployment plus COVID relief than working, so why work, right?
What makes it the worst of times is that it seems that everything has changed. Everything we thought of as normal is no longer normal. People are angry, really angry. And some are fearful, and tearful. Does any of this resonate with you?
I do want to offer a counterperspective I hope encourages you. In fact, this worldview can actually persuade you to believe 2021 is really the best of times.
Are you ready for it? Here it is, in 10 hope-giving words: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). The most important thing in the universe, the most important person in the universe, has not changed at all. What does that mean for you?
It means Jesus still loves you. It means Jesus still offers salvation from your sins. It means he is still in control of all things. It means his plans haven’t changed or been waylaid by COVID.
It means Jesus is still preparing a place for his children. It means he will still be coming back to get them. It means his forgiveness will cover your anger. His comfort will swallow up your fear. His word will still be a light for you in the middle of the fog, even in the valley of the shadow of death.
He will make all things new; he will make all things right; and it will all be beautiful in his time. Trust him.
