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Even though Jesus felt more distant, the truth is that he isn’t an inch further from me or you than when this pandemic broke out.

God’s invites us to not only join him in the suffering around us; he is also inviting us to explore our own personal disappointments and losses on a deeper level. This difficult time can be an opportunity to cultivate newness.

I haven’t felt like praying lately. Of all times you’d think I’d want to pray more, it’d be right now—alone in my one-bedroom apartment in a foreign country during a global pandemic.

I don’t know what you are facing, but God does. He wants to meet you in the reality of the finished work of Jesus Christ, the gospel—our hope. Let him meet you there and, if necessary, seek out others and let them help you as well.

Sometimes it can help to have a prayer that’s already been written and to pray it in community (even if it has to be online community right now). Here’s one prayer you can pray aloud with others to help spur you on to pray more. 

In this new season, real hope isn’t a cliché. No, God, in his wisdom and sovereignty, guided us to this theme two years before COVID-19. He knew how people would crave tangible hope right now. 

But I believe, as a follower of Christ, that it is essential to be an intentional, active member of a church community. Membership facilitates opportunities for vulnerable relationships and accountability. 

What if we approached the New Year with a new take on creating resolutions? What if instead of “trying to fix ourselves,” we chose one thing we wanted more of? Something we want to bring into our lives in order to follow Christ more closely.

Exposing our sins—although uncomfortable—is exactly what we need. It’s the first step in being cleansed of them and reminds us that no matter how great our sin, Jesus is greater!

Jesus is at work in the shape of the world, through the shape of the world. “Gradually, then suddenly” is the shape that transformation takes in God’s kingdom. It can be hard to see with our limited, sin-damaged perception. Yet, it is happening nonetheless.