Giving Thanks Even in 2020

Passage: Psalms

This has been a challenging year for all of us and for me as a pastor. I have been pushed to the limits. But I want to be clear about something. I have not ceased to give thanks to God for you. I love you and I thank God for you and for the privilege of being your pastor. How do you give thanks in a year like 2020? 2020 will go down in the history books as one of the worst years ever, not the worst, there are several contenders for that title, but certainly one of the worst, and perhaps the worst in most of our life-times, with the possible exception of those of you who endured the Nazi occupation of Holland. But back to my question, how do we give thanks for a year like 2020? Maybe we shouldn’t. Maybe we should write-off 2020 like a bad investment and try to forget about it. Maybe we should just look forward to 2021. How do you give thanks in the midst of disappointments, heartaches, fears, losses, health challenges, loss of loved ones, discouragements of all kinds for all the things we couldn’t do. How we give thanks for 2020 will depend on our theology, on what we believe about God, on how we understand the sovereignty and providence of God.