It’s a Wonderful Life
What does a wonderful life look like to you?
Security?
Opportunity?
Longevity?
Have you felt like the soundtrack to your life recently has been a breakup song called 2020?? I FEEL THAT.
What I mean is- do you feel like this year did you wrong? In a lot of ways, I have had my fair share of obstacles to face this year because of the pandemic. I started the year off working two jobs (which was a lot of work, but I absolutely loved it and would do it again!) in DC and was planning our wedding in June 2020. I was pretty much on track for everything to turn out exactly as we dreamed. I was training for my first ever race. Mind you- I absolutely hate running, but it had been an opportunity to prove to myself that I don’t have to be my own worst enemy. My will is stronger than my doubt- that was my goal!!
I was in many ways thriving and feeling like this year was going to be the YEAR IT ALL HAPPENED. Little did I know that it was the YEAR IT ALL HAPPENED, but the things that happened weren't in my plans at all. In fact, 2020 was on track to rip my plans to a thousand pieces. March hit and everything I was looking forward to was all of a sudden completely uncertain, which led to much disappointment. My social butterfly was now quarantined to a very small space and I felt like there was no air to breathe. The 7 (enneagram reference) in me was starving for my normalcy of adventure and freedom. I had a bad ankle injury which caused me to stop training and working out (which was a nightmare right before the biggest photo-op in a girl’s life - her wedding!!)
QUEUE the 2020 BREAKUP SONG.
Dear 2020, you completely turned my world upside down.
Zach and I ended up completely rerouting our wedding plans (like so many others). We cancelled the caterer, the venue, etc. BUT, after many tear-filled nights and prayerful mornings, we decided that there was no way we were going to let anything stand in the way of our marriage. Soooo, we decided to book a beautiful AirBnB in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and hosted our immediate family and bridal party for a weekend I will never forget. We literally squished every bridal event into that weekend. It was the most intimate and cherished time in my entire life. Was it what we had planned? NOPE. Never in a million years, would I have thought to do something like this. However, we were blessed beyond measure.
Wedding Video by Film & Flourish
There were a lot of people hurting this year - for an array of reasons… loneliness, depression, anxiety, sickness, poverty, etc. It truly makes my heart hurt for all of the sorrow that was surrounding us this year.
Sorrow / ˈsärō / - a feeling of deep distress caused by loss, disappointment, or other misfortune suffered by oneself or others.
Ukraine 2016
A few years ago, I was in Ukraine volunteering for an organization and we were spending much of our time in an orphanage that housed children with disabilities. The organization focused on helping them grow in many areas of their life: education, faith, physical therapy, etc. It truly was inspiring to know these beautiful children who had mostly been forgotten by the world. I had a conversation with a young man who was nearly aging out of the system and I asked him, “What would you like to do when you leave? Do you have any interests?” He looked at me with a blank stare of confusion. He said, “What are you talking about? I can’t do anything. Can’t you see me sitting in this wheelchair?”
In that moment, I finally understood. Not just this conversation, but all of it. These children felt helpless and worthless because they felt as though they had no hope. They couldn’t see how valuable they are and how gifted they are — because the world they were living in was preaching “THERE IS NO HOPE FOR YOU!”
These voices can often feel extremely loud, especially right now. But it doesn’t mean they are true.
As the holidays are around the corner and drawing closer every passing day, I can’t help but feel extra sentimental about them this year. I have always been a romantic for a good hallmark Christmas, but for some reason I feel like I appreciate them more this year. Have you ever seen the Christmas movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life.”?? It is my dad’s favorite Christmas movie and it has surely been passed on to me. If you have never seen it… YOU MUST. It is a reality check for me every year- what is life really about? So again, I ask you…What does it mean to live a wonderful life?
Even when we are at the lowest of lows… we have one thing that no perfectly wrapped present is ever going to give us…
Hope / hōp / - a confident expectation of God’s promises.
Hope is often misconstrued in today’s culture. It can be thought of as a wish or a desire, but it is so much more. Maybe you don't know about all that God has promised to you - but I would encourage you to look into what God has already declared is yours! Hope changes everything!! It changes the way we see ourselves. It changes the way we live and see the world - especially in the hard times.
Christmas is a celebration of hope. It should be treated as such. It can feel like -this year- we need it more than ever. Do not let the year -2020- go by without knowing what your source of hope is. I know Who my source of hope is and because of that, I can withstand the uncertainty this world offers and cling to something (or should I say Someone) [who] is much more enduring.
If any of those three things I mentioned (security, opportunity, longevity) resonated with you. I have good news. All of those things are redefined, not by the world’s standards, but in God’s promises for you.
Job 11:18 - “And you will feel secure, because there is hope; you will look around and take your rest in security.”
Jeremiah 29:11 - “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Proverbs 9:11 - “For by me your days will be multiplied, and years will be added to your life.”
“The world waits for a miracle. The heart longs for a little bit of hope.
O come, O come Emmanuel.”
