The Gate of the Year

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”
And he replied:
“Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”

— Minnie Louise Haskins

This excerpt from Haskins’ poem “God Knows” seems a fitting way to begin the new adventure of 2017, and the launch of BellissiWarriors.

Most of the time we think we know what lies ahead, that life will pretty much be as we expect.  So we walk confidently forward, five year plan and to-do list in hand.  Until the news comes.  Until the phone rings.  Until all our carefully arranged expectations are shattered and we are left with broken plans, broken pieces, broken hearts, unsure how to carry on into the new unknown.

This is where we long for light, for security, for insurance.  And it’s where God invites us to walk with Him, confidently trusting Him to guide our steps, to keep us safe, to protect us.  His guidance will never lead us astray, no matter how dark or uncertain the path ahead seems.

Back in the very beginning, before there was any brokenness in the world, God placed a tree in a Garden.  Then He asked Adam and Eve not to eat any of its fruit.  Why?  Wouldn’t life have been so much simpler if He hadn’t?

Maybe the tree was God giving Adam and Eve the opportunity to trust Him.  Its very existence is like God asking, “Do you trust Me?  Do you trust that I have your best interests in mind?  Do you trust me enough to choose My ways over your own desires?”

Satan twisted those questions when he approached Eve.  “Is God trustworthy?  Does He really have your best interests in mind?  Is obeying Him really worth it?”  This led Eve to doubt God and brought brokenness into the world.

The answer to those questions is YES!  God is trustworthy.  God has your best interests in mind.  Obeying Him, choosing His ways over our own desires, really is worth it.

Every circumstance where we are faced with a choice between God’s ways and our own is an invitation to trust God.  Trust grows when it’s stretched, when it’s put to the test and proven.  My daughter likes to randomly shout, “Trust fall!” and collapse onto the person nearest her.  Fortunately, she hasn’t hit the ground yet!  When we shout “Trust fall!” and jump into the unknown, God will catch us.  He will prove Himself time and again and our trust in Him will grow.

James put it another way: “When troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow” (1:2-3).

My friends, as we stand on the threshold of the new year, none of us know what lies ahead.  The way is shrouded in uncertainty.  But I am confident of this – God is faithful.  Our way forward is by faith that the One who holds our hand is trustworthy.