Dearest Sister,
The week between Christmas and New Year’s usually boasts of talking heads heralding the highlights of the year. I actually enjoy getting their particular bents as it lends me to reminisce about forgotten headlines both global and personal. For instance, I heard there were twelve natural disasters in America that cost over a billion dollars each. Who could forget the congressional fights over debt, loved ones who were forced to foreclose, or those still without jobs? Then there were the deaths of Osama Bin Laden, Kim Jong Il, Steve Jobs, and Andy Rooney. There were earthquakes in Virginia to Japan and flooding in Thailand and the Philippines. And the war in Iraq officially came to an end with a quiet prayer one day and bursting bombs the next. Sadly, the pains of life are more noteworthy than the smiles.
Closer to home I experienced a move to a new country seven months pregnant and without a job for the first time in my life…my new role being the spouse of a Navy officer. My husband now had his first full time job since he began his quest to Chaplaincy eight years ago which immediately sent him on his first deployment a month after we stepped off the plane in Okinawa, Japan. We then were blessed with the birth of our first baby girl who came after a 24 hour labor filled with lost medical records, being turned away because there was no room in the ward, a broken labor bed which lowered my head with a jolt, and an earthquake that shook the hospital from the bottom up. There were two other deployments that sent Barrett away for months at a time, a tsunami warning, typhoons, and the tsunami that actually hit mainland Japan. My parents were both admitted to the hospital after trips to the ER with abdominal pain and they moved from my childhood home in RI to VA. The hardships in my year seem to have topped my own highlight reel as well.
Each of you have similar pains, sorrows, and joys of your own from this past year. It reminds us that there is evil in this world and bad things do happen. We still are seeing the effects of a choice to sin in a beautiful garden so many years ago. But we also can experience the same hope and joy that was offered after Adam ate that delectable but deadly bite. Yes, the penalty of the sin I do every day is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ his Son. The Word of God says that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Rom 10:9). This is good news! It gives us hope in a messy world filled with fights, heartaches, bad decisions, and death. It gives meaning to sorrows and highlights the Savior who understands them all and answers them with hope.
Israel consistently left stone markers/alters in their lives to remind them of the faithfulness of the Lord and His promise of a Redeemer. Their celebrations of battles won, big and small, reminded them of their promised Savior. As I see a sunset on the seawall while holding my little Annabelle close, I am reminded of this gift from our Lord. When I see Barrett wave from the bow of the USS Germantown I am reminded of the kindness of the Lord in bringing him home. As I see Annabelle’s pudgy arms reach for Barrett with a wide grin my heart is thankful to the Lord for this good gift. All good gifts come from the Lord.
This year may I be more aware and thankful for these good gifts, may I pray and serve all who are near and far, may I lean into my Comforter in hard times knowing he sacrificed his all for me, may I trust my Redeemer when I feel all is lost knowing He died and rose again so I have Christ for eternity, and may I be thankful for my Savior who is the ultimate example and servant of all.
From your sister,
Colleen