Welcome back and Happy New Year! Yep, it’s that wonderful time of year for resolutions and setting goals and planning and renewed determination and getting organized and this and that and the other thing and well…it can all morph into an overwhelming chaotic mess.
So, you take a deep breath, hitch up your pants (like Barney Fife?), and hope for a fresh start to the semester and this new year. You make your plans and set your goals. You hope for good days. You hope your team wins. You hope you pass your classes, graduate and get a job. Your parents probably hope for that, too- maybe a little bit more!
But often, things get in the way. Hardship arrives. Worry-free days give way to more stress-filled ones. A roommate suddenly becomes difficult. You blow an assignment and then you begin to lose a little bit of hope. So, now what?
A pastor friend of mine recently said, “the secret of hope does not rest in better circumstances. The secret of hope anchors to the hope of God in and with us.”
Circumstances are fickle and ever-changing. James 4 reminds us that our plans may be good but far from certain. We don’t know what each day will bring. Some days are going to be awesome, and some days will be weird, awkward, or painful. But in every circumstance, we do have the promises of God. It’s in the high and low moments, that “you can call this to mind and therefore have hope! The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never end. They are new every morning. Great is YOUR faithfulness… Therefore, I will hope in Him” (Lamentations 3:21-24). Now, you may think that’s a flannel graph fave cliché tossed your way- a new year/new mercies rimshot- But it doesn’t make His promise any less true.
This semester, try to open your eyes, ears and heart to all the new mercies the Lord brings each day. Look for the miraculous mundane. (For example, in these rather chilly brisk days of January, here’s one thing that’s even cooler: the days gets longer! By the time February 1st rolls around, we will have gained a whopping 54 minutes a day. And when Spring Break beckons in March, we will have two more hours of daylight than today! That’s some mercy! Yes!?)
Singer-songwriter Andy Gullahorn released an album called Beyond the Frame ten years ago that remains one of my favorites. It includes one of the funniest songs ever, but many of the songs reflect on the adversity we face in our daily lives and how Christ remains steadfast and faithful. Any Less True encourages us to reject the lies of circumstance:
They say God listens to our prayers
When you're suffering, he holds you
I don't feel Him anywhere
But that doesn't make it any less true.
While the song Grand Canyon reminds us that our snapshot view of life remains limited. In all of our experiences- sorrowful or rejoicing, we just can’t see the whole picture. There is so much more beyond the frame. Trust in the promises of God. Your story isn’t over yet.
There are cards and letters
All letting their love be heard
Sympathetic smiles
From those at a loss for words
In our wake there are whispers
That tell of where we've been…
I took a picture of the Grand Canyon
So I could remember that day
Oh but the beauty of the Grand Canyon
Stretches way beyond the frame…
The story isn’t over yet…
The story isn’t over.
Now may the God of Hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope (Romans 15:13).
Mark Seignious
Associate Professor
Department of Communication Chair
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