The Last Pastor’s Garage of 2020

Another well written Pastor’s Garage from Pastor Mike!

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*Pastor Mike’s Garage-Dec 31, 2020*

As I sit in my office pondering what to write for my year end edition
of the pastors garage the word *NEW* keeps coming to mind. It has been an
interesting year to say the least. According to CTV news it was on Dec 31,
2019 that the World Health Organization was officially informed of several
cases of an unusual pneumonia in Wuhan China. It has been a year marked by
fear, isolation, racial tension, closures, division, rallies, distrust,
financial uncertainty, loneliness, conspiracy, worry, and change. But I
think in the midst of all of that there have been some positives as well.
While hard times bring the worst out in some people it also brings the best
out in others! I’ve seen much generosity shown and offered over the last
year! I think for the most part most have reevaluated their priorities and
what is important in life. Some of the things we were so concerned over and
willing to fight over a year ago are not even on the radar now.

This coming Sunday I will be giving leadership to our church gathering
and I want to focus on the word* NEW* in light of scripture. As I
researched the word two examples used in scripture come to mind that I want
to use in this Pastors Garage. The first is in Ecclesiastes 1:9 “What has
been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and
there is nothing *NEW* under the sun.” The reality is that while this has
in many respects been an unpleasant year, in light of history there have
been many dark times, and in fact in what we are currently going through,
while not exactly a walk in the park, still pales in comparison. The events
surrounding both world wars, the Spanish flu of 1918, the Bubonic plague of
the 1600’s in Europe and Asia, just to name a few. If you look up “list of
pandemics” on Wikipedia it will give you a list as long as your arm of
pandemics throughout the last 800 years, some of which killing up to 50-90%
of local populations. To think what others have gone through in the past in
light of this current affliction is staggering!

And yet there is another use of the word *NEW* in scripture that brings
light, hope and promise to our future. It is found in the book of
Revelation. It is these verses that I want to leave you with. I won’t lie
to you, as I read them this morning after thinking over the last year, and
the stress and worry it has brought, I was deeply moved! On behalf of
myself, my family, and our church I would like to wish you a Happy New Year
and all of God’s blessings and promises for the coming year!

“Then I saw a *NEW* heaven and a *NEW* earth, for the first heaven and the
first earth had disappeared, and the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy
city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride
beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne
saying, “Look God’s home is now among his people. He will live with them.
And they will be his people, and God himself will be with them. He will
wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death, or
sorrow, or crying, or pain. All these things are gone forever.” And the one
sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything *NEW*.” And then
he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and
true.” And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the end. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the
springs of the water of life. All who are victorious will inherit all these
blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.””
Revelation 21:1-7

Pastor Mike