There is something about those two words, brand new, that make joy bubble up inside of me. Brand new dress, brand new book, brand new shoes, brand new house, brand new car, brand new baby (what household doesn’t love the sounds of brand new baby?), brand new coat, brand new year. Wait, what? Brand new year? Now, that appeals to me. Really appeals. I think everyone will agree that 2020 was a year for the books. Let’s hope and pray that 2021 will be a different sort of year, one with less illness, less isolation, less drama, less loss, and less politics. Let’s just say it out loud, shall we? “Twenty-twenty, goodbye, good riddance, and we won’t miss you!” Now, didn’t that feel good?

Seriously, while I would never want to repeat this year, there were some lessons to be learned from it. Romans 8:28 is clear about all things working out for good for those who love the Lord and who trust in His purposes. (Excuse my paraphrase.) Yes, in everything, the good, the bad, and the ugly, if we look hard enough, we will see a bit of good coming from it. Sometimes it’s crystal clear, and at other times, we have to search a little harder. But in ALL things, there is a reason to be thankful, a reason to hope, and a reason to believe.

I hope as we usher out 2020 and usher in the “brand new” year, you will look ahead with hope—because it does exist. With loss, there are new beginnings; with sadness, there is joy to come; with grief, there is healing ahead; and with despair, there is hope. Always hope.

May 2021 be your year to grow a little more, to love a little harder, to believe a little deeper, and to hope a little greater.

Remember this, friends: “It is because of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: Great is Thy Faithfulness.”  Lamentations 3:22, 23