The other night, a news anchor described this last year as “a dumpster fire.” And looking forward, some voices are already forecasting 2024 as the darkest time we’ve yet seen. I guess all of that talk is accurate, in a world where politics rule, and truth is only as true as which mob can shout the loudest.
That’s why I’m thrilled to have lived somewhere else for the last thirty-nine years. Not that I was on Mars, or anything (Actually, another planet wouldn’t be far enough to illustrate the difference, anyway). You see, like every believer in Christ, I inhabit another creation—”if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Cor. 5:17)—an entirely different order of things, where redemption rules. Nothing is ever lost there.
Now I have to admit, I took a pretty good beating in 2023. We are, after all, still partly citizens of this old order, where folks get sick, misbehave, and die, where money runs out, and time is scarce. Things of this world got dicey for me halfway through the year, and became downright wearying. But this is the point of redemption–nothing and no one is beyond hope.
This last year was not one big dumpster fire. In fact, I can’t help but feel that the challenges I faced were somehow linked to the blessings. And 2023 was definitely a banner year for blessings–prayers answered after years of waiting, unexpected windfalls upon the church, people who broke free and took a new step in life.
As for 2024 being a new nightmare on the rise: I wouldn’t doubt it. I recommend holding a dual passport for both old and new creations. While one always inflicts pain and loss, the other always redeems.
