The holidays have come and gone, and a New Year of HOPE is upon us. As the old year passed and the new one came, I was reminded of Paul's words to the Philippians in 3:13, "Dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead."
Isaiah 43:18, 19 says, "Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."
And the writer to the Hebrews uses my favorite word for this year - "This HOPE we have is like a strong and trustworthy Anchor for our souls (Heb. 6:19).
This year, as widows, we face new challenges as we continue to tread our new paths of finding our "New Normal"~ life without our spouses. Difficult as it seems, it is not impossible, for the Lord is with us. This morning at church we sang a song that tells of our being "Friends of God". The Almighty King, the Lord of Glory calls you and me His friends. What an awesome thought! So with Him, our challenges get smaller when we keep our eyes and hearts on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our Faith. He is the Alpha, Omega, the Beginning and the End, and with His Grace and help, absolutely nothing is impossible for us.
Looking back can be good (if we use it constructively). We all have wonderful memories. After more than forty years, I could not forget my husband if I tried. Whenever I see a son or grandchild, I see facets of his life before me through them. Yet those first six years were extremely difficult. His death and burial were in February, prior to his 31st birthday and our 10th wedding anniversary. In the middle was Valentine's Day, which I faced without the love of my life. Every day was filled with bitter-sweet memories.
As we in Delaware also know, the month of February is usually one of the darkest months of the year, lots of cloudy, rainy, possibly icy or snowy days when all seems dark and hopeless. But that 6th year brought a great change to me. I was led to a Prayer Meeting at my church after spending every Sunday those past years wondering where God could be found. I knew He had to be real. He had to be the Creator and Sustainer of our vast universe, and the birth of my three sons and love of my husband revealed to me a certain knowledge there had to be a Source of that Love. That night I realized for the first time I could have a personal relationship with that God who'd seemed so far away. He was no longer far away, but now lived within my own heart, and I suddenly felt a new peace. Even the dark days seemed brighter, and I learned that God dwells in the clouds (Ps. 97:2). He led the Israelites in the Cloud by day (to protect them from the hot desert sun) and a Fire by night (to keep them warm in the cold desert nights) (Exodus).
That year began a whole new life for me, and I pray if anyone reading this does not know our loving Jesus personally, they will ask Him to reveal Himself to them, to come into their lives. As I look back on all the doors that have opened to me in these past years, I am in awe, from a Prayer Tour over the Holy Lands, to six trips to many cities all over China, with visits to Hong Kong; Tokyo, Japan; Seoul, Korea; Manilla in the Philippines, and a myriad of other wonderful experiences that young widow in1970 could not have imagined. Yet God opens doors we cannot begin to fathom. His word also tells us in Eph. 3:20 "He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we can ask or think, according to the power that works in us."
My precious friends, I pray 2011 will indeed be a New Year of HOPE for each of you, times of fresh revelations of the Extraordinary Grace our Blessed Lord Jesus has in store for each of us to walk in daily.
My love and prayers for a year of deep healing and restoration above and beyond all you can imagine.
In Christ's love and mine, Dee
