A Happy 2021
Happy New Year! “Is it?” some may ask; and yes, I believe it will be. Does that mean it will be trouble-free? Of course not! We live in a world where happiness and sadness co-exist; where good and bad things go side by side. Life is not a fantasy where everything is constantly perfect, but neither is it constantly bad. We love it when things go well, obviously, but we also need to accept when things don’t turn out the way we intended or hoped.
2020 was a year that didn’t go to plan for anyone. The entire world has it’s plans upended and we saw destruction to lives, families, livelihoods, and the economy. Education was disrupted, social lives were put on hold, many faced unemployment, financial hardship, loneliness and loss of loved ones. It would be so easy to remember 2020 for those things. Yet, 2020 also was a year in which people re-gained a sense of community and humanity that had been lost. People pulled together to help loved ones, neighbours, and even strangers in need. The country gained a new appreciation for the often unappreciated NHS, and keyworkers. Our government worked tirelessly to try and ensure as little damage as possible was done to the population and the economy. Scientists worked round the clock to come up with a vaccine, and they achieved that goal in record time. The list of things to be thankful for over 2020 is huge, and personally, I choose to focus on those things and be grateful.
Throughout my life I have had plenty of things happen to me that have caused other people to feel sorry for me; but I hate that. Do you know why? – It’s because I choose to count blessings and focus on the positives, rather than the negatives. I have found that if I live with a sense of expectancy, and look for the nuggets of blessing and joy in every day, they will always be found. It is so easy to get caught up in our troubles, but if we have an attitude of gratitude, the positive things will outweigh the negatives.
People often ask me how I stay so positive and smiley when I am in such pain and discomfort all the time. I have often dismissed it by saying something like “Oh well, you have to stay positive don’t you?”, or “If I don’t laugh, I would probably cry”. But the truth is that it is near impossible to stay strong and positive in the face of adversity in our own strength. My answer is my faith in God. As a Christian I believe that “The Joy of the Lord is my Strength” (Nehemiah 8v10). The Bible tells us the Jesus “came that we might have life in all it’s fullness” (John 10v10), and I can testify that with Jesus at the centre of my life, this verse couldn’t be more true.
So I don’t just ‘wish’ you a Happy 2021, but I pray that you will know God’s blessing upon you this year; that you will know joy and peace no matter what the circumstances of life, and that you will embrace life in all it’s fullness.
All my love, Beckey xx