2020.
The longest, shortest year I’ve ever experienced.
Can I get an amen?!
I know in light of what others throughout history have experienced, 2020 hasn’t been the worst year ever.
But it has taken a toll on us all, some physically, and most mentally or emotionally.
As we move into the Christmas season, I’m reminded of the hope that arrived in a manger one night.
Emmanuel.
God with us.
How wonderful and amazing it must have been for Mary to look into the face of her baby boy and know that God was right there.
Robed in flesh.
Dwelling among humanity.
God with us.
There was no room in the inn, and she had to deliver her child in a stable after traveling miles and miles while pregnant (seems very 2020 to me…), but knowing that God was right there in her arms had to bring her peace.
The good news for us is that even though it’s been over 2,000 years since Emmanuel made His first appearance, He’s still with us.
In John 14, as Jesus prepared the disciples for His departure from this earth, He gave us hope when He said, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”
And that’s exactly what He did, beginning on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Ghost was first poured out.
For every Spirit-filled believer, He is Emmanuel, God with us.
Through all the ups and downs of this year, He’s been with us.
As we face the uncertainties of the new year, He’s still with us.
In the good, the bad, the victories, the disappointments, in our weeping and rejoicing, He’s with us.
And because He’s still with us, we have hope.
Romans 15:13 says, “Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.”
The same hope the world received when Jesus was wrapped in swaddling cloths and laid in a manger, is the hope we have through the power of the Holy Ghost, which is His Spirit on the inside of us.
I simply write to remind you that you are not alone.
You are never alone.
Whatever you’re leaving behind in 2020, and whatever you face in the coming year, hold onto the hope that comes in knowing that He’s with you.
He is still Emmanuel.
God with us.
