Hope can overcome a new year’s challenges
A new year invites reflection, particularly for those of us who are striving to become more like Christ. In the Gospels, it appears that Jesus often took time to go away and seek the Father's guidance in the midst of all the challenges of his earthly ministry. As his followers, we, too, face tremendous challenges. 1 Peter 4 reminds us that we can expect suffering in this life. So a time of prayer and devotional reading is a good place to start the year. The following thoughts may help shape your time alone with God.
• For many Christians, persecution is a daily reality. Whether it's the deadly attacks on churches in Nigeria—40 killed on Christmas Day—or the fear of hostility toward Christians in the Middle East following the Arab spring, it's a difficult time to be a believer in many parts of the world. We owe it to our brothers and sisters to pray for them, advocate on their behalf and seek God's direction.
• For more than one billion people who make less than a $1.25 a day, 2012 is another year of grinding poverty. We may forget that many in this situation are Christians. We can help through our direct financial support and by challenging governments and international institutions to make their plight a priority. The continuing economic crisis in our world is not an excuse to make the poor pay the highest price for the greed, stupidity and carelessness of the individuals and institutions that created this mess.
• What is God saying to us about the religious tensions in our world? Is the answer to seek to destroy and attack other religions, especially the fundamentalists? Or are we called to love and seek to understand what creates this climate of fear and repression? In Canada, we have a chance to respect—not simply tolerate—people of other faiths, even work together where we share common humanitarian values. At the same time, we can hold strongly to the uniqueness of Jesus as Savior and Lord. This unshakable belief does not impede our ability to work constructively together.
• Finally, how can we do more to make Canada a place that is better for all of us? We cannot be passive and expect different results. Poverty still affects one out of every seven children. What would Jesus say to that? Despair, loneliness and depression are a reality for many, yet the Christian faith offers hope and salvation. We are beggars who have been given the bread of life. It's our job to share it.
There are signs of hope in many places. On a recent trip to Bolivia, I met a mother of three children who is barely literate but runs a small sewing business. She looked at me with sparkling eyes and said, "My daughter is in university. She is studying to be a lawyer." In one generation, this family is being transformed.
I met another woman whose husband was abusing their children. She was given Christian counseling that empowered her to speak to her husband about his behavior. He changed. The family changed. The three children are in school now. They're healthy and their future prospects are good. With tears, this mother shared how grateful she is for the power of God in her life.
Most importantly, as we begin the New Year, we are people of hope because we serve a God who provides hope. Taking time to reflect and pray opens our hearts and minds to the truth of a God who loves us and seeks us out. He wants us to join his movement. It's one that keeps turning the world upside down. There will be challenges, but "those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint" (Isaiah 40:31).
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