Lessons Learned in 2020
Here are a few things I learned in 2020…
No matter how much we try, we can not predict what tomorrow holds. No one on December 31st of 2019 could have seen 2020 coming, except God. No matter how much we tried to figure out what was coming next it didn't change a thing. This past year reminded us once again that we are not God. We're not omniscient or all-knowing. We are not eternal, transcending time--living in the past, future, and present at the same time. We kept trying to figure out and even joked about what was coming next. I learned that humanity would prefer to know what the future holds instead of trusting who (God) already knows it. I learned that in the middle of trying to figure out what was coming next, we missed embracing what we needed to learn or do in the present. We can get so wrapped up in worrying and trying to figure out what is next that we neglect to follow what we already know right now...worship God and love one another. 2020 taught me what matters the most is what I do with each day God has given me and not to worry about the future.
I learned what it’s like to hear and recognize God's voice. I learned to trust my gut when it came to steering the church and my family through 2020. Whenever I went with my gut it ended up being the right decision, whether that was to close down the office, reopen church, hold off on a purchase, hire a new staff member, let go of a contractor, take a week off from preaching, or postpone a Christmas production. I sensed a simple nudge in my stomach and sometimes I sensed God’s peace through common sense. I also learned to recognize God’s voice when I didn’t go with God and my gut and chose wrong. This was a major lesson for me because at the beginning of 2020 I asked God to help me know how to hear His voice. I had forgotten I wrote this prayer until I recently looked at my prayer journal from the beginning of 2020. I learned that if I'm in tune with God by being in His Word, in prayer, and open to the leading of His Spirit, I would know what is and isn’t His voice. It took a year of a pandemic among many other trials to learn the voice of God. I'm asking God to continue to tune my ears to His voice for 2021.
I learned self-control and patience. 2020 was the year where you could really get yourself in trouble by what you said or posted on social media. I learned that just because you have an outlet doesn't mean you need to use it. I learned to be careful of what I did write and to think through how it would make others feel. I've done that for years but this year took it to a whole new level. There were days my mouth could have really stirred the pot but I waited, prayed, and decided that my post or article wouldn't change millions of minds. While I do think my influence is important, I concluded it would be better for the world to hear words that came from the mouth of Jesus. Millions of people have yet to hear everything Jesus said and they are words that offer eternal life. I used to make hasty decisions and would suffer the consequences later. I used to quickly reply and regret what I said later. I'm still a work in progress but I definitely learned to wait this year. I learned to let things settle down, not to react but respond, prayerfully, and with grace. I learned to let God work and move even if it meant someone else gets to make the call. I started realizing someone else may have the answer and that it doesn't always have to be me. Just because I'm a lead pastor doesn't mean another staff member doesn’t have an answer or isn't hearing from God. There were numerous occasions where my amazing leadership team or board of directors had the right answer and it was God working through them. I can also say God used my wife many times for matters in our family. 2020 truly taught me to have self-control, be patient, and let God lead the way.
I learned in you can’t out-give God. It may be a little cliche to say that but it was only a theory in my life until 2020. This theory is now a fact. My wife and I increased our giving to the church, to missions, and to those in need and we watched God match everything but He also went above and beyond. We watched 3 financial miracles take place in our own home this past spring in a matter of weeks. God redeemed 10 years of financial struggles in one month. We would receive a gift and just give it away to someone in need, only to receive triple and even five times more than what we gave away, days later. We eventually realized God was showing us financial miracles so we could be someone else's financial miracle.
I learned many things this past year. I definitely learned quality time with my family is essential. I learned how valuable teamwork is in my home and at my workplace. I learned that no one knows how to perfectly handle a pandemic. I learned that our world holds a lot of pain, grudges and we need to forgive more, moving forward. I learned we need to show each other more grace but also hold others more accountable for their actions.
Overall, I learned that God remains undefeated. In my eyes, God has remained the most faithful and consistent person (the only worthy place) for my trust and faith to land. God is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do. Jesus has no rivals and will never steer me wrong. The Holy Spirit is my helper and comforter! I love my family and thank God for the lessons we learned together. I am grateful for my church family, we are stronger than we’ve ever been!
Goodbye, 2020. I’m grateful to God for the many lessons I learned. I pray we take what we learned and live even better lives in 2021.
Happy New Years!
Pastor Ryan