“Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth” (Prov. 27:1).
If ever there was a year to confirm the truth of Proverbs 27:1, it would be 2020. Who, except God, could have foreseen at the close of 2019 the magnitude of such a difficult year as 2020? So many are talking about being glad to put 2020 behind them. However, one is not guaranteed that the year ahead will be less difficult than any other. How shall the child of God see 2021 from a Biblical perspective?
1. Seek Spiritual Things. 2020 definitely manifested an upheaval against materialistic thinking. Unemployment, closures, uncertainty concerning the virus, lockdowns, etc. abounded. If one’s life in 2020 was centered on things temporal, then disappointment and frustration were a constant presence. Jesus taught about the true purpose of life and its blessings. “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof” (Matt. 6:33-34). Life is truly to be lived to be “rich toward God” (Luke 12:21).
2. Seize Opportunities. Paul wrote against the background of the first century struggles, “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is” (Eph. 5:15-17). 2020 had its opportunities to do good, especially to those who needed encouragement and help. Every year brings both obstacles and opportunities. John wrote to Christians in their opportunities to overcome. “I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father. I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one” (1 John 2:13-14). Victories and virtuous opportunities are always before the eyes of God’s people. It is simply a matter of seeing the opportunities and seizing the moments.
3. Secure Oneself in God. Confidence within the Christian is found only in God. Paul wrote, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God” (2 Cor. 3:5). Again, “Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:6-8). One of the psalms points man to his strength in God. “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God” (Ps. 42:11). 2020 was a year of shaken and disturbing thoughts on many fronts. It is a blessing to know that the God of all wisdom and power is the solid refuge in any time of trouble (cf. Ps. 46:1). Whatever 2021 holds, the child of God has optimism because of God.
Jimmy Clark