A Norvell Note for February 21, 2022
Vol. 26 No. 08
Are Things Better?
I seem to have more questions than answers. Questions that may or may not have answers. For instance, are things better?
It feels like things are better. It feels like life is getting back to what we once knew as routine. But are things better?
More people are traveling, but air travel and gas prices are higher than most have ever known. More people are shopping and eating out, yet almost every business you enter is short-handed posts a sign saying, “We’re hiring.”
Churches are open and functioning, but attendance is lower than in years, and people seem to be fine without it.
Our world is anxious due to the threat of war. There is a new story of hatred, anger, and violence every week. Fires, floods, snowstorms, and tornados are more prevalent than we have ever known.
Are things better?
I reflect on these words from the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah:
They dress the wound of my people
as though it were not serious.
‘Peace, peace,’ they say,
when there is no peace. (Jeremiah 6:13)
Are things better, or are we just so tired of the way things are that we have adopted the philosophy of, “Fake it till you make it?’?
Last week a very dear friend reminded me of the words on a bracelet I gave him and the one I’ve worn on my right hand for years: “No complaints! No fear! Finish strong!” His message took me back to the reason I had for creating the bracelets in the first place.
I do not want to live in fear. I do not wish to live in fear of what is happening around me or what might happen in the future to control how I live. I desire to live with confidence and courage, not fear.
I try not to complain, but sometimes I do. Things pile up, I get stressed, I’m in a hurry, and something blows my plan. The reminder on my wrist challenges me to do better.
I am trying to finish strong. There are days and nights when I feel finished, but not very strong. There are days when I wonder if I have anything left to offer, and I rely on the truth in these words: “To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27).
Are things better? I don’t know. Are they going to get better? I don’t know. But, I know this, if I can live without fear, restrain from complaining, and focus on finishing strong today, things will be better for me, and maybe that will make things better for a few of those who live within my circle of influence.
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