New

New Year's Eve has arrived! It's hard to believe....so much has happened in our family in the last year and it has gone by SO quickly.

2009 was full of blessings. We welcomed sweet little Judah to our family and we couldn't be more thankful.

Of course, we have had our share of struggles, as well. We feel very blessed, though, that this year came and went without too much sorrow in our family.

Unfortunately, I know that this is not always the case. For many people, this year came with tragedy, loss, despair, and events that they would love to forget.

Unfortunatley, I know about that first hand. One of the darkest times in my life came around a holiday. I know that sometimes this time of celebrating, when the rest of the world seems joyful and carefree, can be daunting and depressing.

It has been sixteen years since we lost my dad in a tragic accident on December 23rd. He was driving his tractor to the grain bin when he arrived at a railroad crossing. There were two tracks. One train was headed east and the other west. At country railroad crossings (as at this particular stop) there are often no bars, bells, or lights to indicate that a train is coming. This is especially dangerous in crossings where there are two tracks...there is no way to see or hear a second train if it is behind the first. So, as the first train cleared the tracks, my dad began to cross, not knowing that there was another train behind it. He died instantly.

I am not writing this post because I need to hear someone express their condolences (not that I don't appreciate it when people do), but that's not the point.

I am not writing to tell you how my life has been more difficult than yours. It hasn't. Everyone has their own battle to fight. Hundreds of examples far more devastating than my own circumnstances: Tragedy. Sorrow. Abuse. Divorce. Neglect. Depression. The list goes on and on. That is not the point, either.

I am writing for one simple reason. My life was forever changed by one devasting day.

My God was not.

God was, is, and always will be faithful.

He is the Most High.

He is our hope.

He is the Alpha and the Omega.

He is enough.

He Yahweh Jireh. He will provide.

He is our peace.

Everyone has to go through their share of crap "stuff" in life. Maybe you have already experienced it. Maybe you haven't. Maybe it has been big...a major loss...or a dozen separate heartwrenching events. Maybe you haven't seen much difficulty thus far.
No matter your situation, we live in a fallen world. There is just no getting around the fact that everybody has to suffer.

But, the real point of this post isn't the suffering. Praise God that he has given us a body of believers with whom we can share our struggles and our tears. We need to come together and mourn with those who mourn. He desires that we enter into those difficult situations and be a comforter. But, the real point isn't the suffering.

It's the victory.

So, in blessing or in trial, I rejoice in this new year. Not because I hope for better circumstances,(although I will be praying for God to intervene that way on behalf of many people), but because my hope is in the One that does not disappoint.

Our hope in 2010:

John 16:33
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

Revelation 5:5
"Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed!"

Proverbs 18:10
"The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe."

Isaiah 9:6
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

John 11:25
"Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies"

Deuteronomy 32:4
"He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he."

Hosea 6:1
"Come, let us return to the LORD; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up."