new year gifts

“Happy New Year” was the collective sentiment of early January 1st, 2023.

We all then went on to find the 2023 year filled with prosperous living, harmonious relationships, health and energy, dreams and goals accomplished, void of sadness—overall better than when the year began. The epitome of that happy year we toasted.

Excuse me…but are we referring to this planet?

I guess we must, because

“Happy New Year” was once again the collective sentiment of early January 1st, 2024.

And so it has been through history and, I expect, so it will be into the future…for we are a sheepish lot, gullible, indifferent, and trained by habit—with genuine desire—to wish the best for ourselves and one another. Still, the definition of happiness, and what actually plays out within our world, is an insult to the word—and a mockery to those whom happiness is persistently evasive.

I mean seriously…is it even fair to look someone in the eyes, as they mourn a personal tragedy, wave a toast and declare “Happy New Year”?

What exactly do we mean by happy?

Well, if we join old Webster by saying it is “the agreeable sensation which springs from the enjoyment of good in which one’s desires are gratified,” then we are set for disappointment by hoping for an entire year of this sensation. Our world, broken and sin-laden, simply does not lend itself to such a constant, euphorious state. It is, in fact, an impossibility.*

But what if this is not what we really mean by toasting to the happiness of the new year?

We are wired for something better, something deeper, something more meaningful. Intuition coaxes us to consider that we were made for another place—another time, even. We are instilled by our Creator for what is real, not superficial, for what is lasting, not temporary. We innately long for what we lack; we innately long for…Him!

The amazing thing is…He longs for us! And He places great importance on communicating this desire.

The Bible declares the commands of God. He commanded the world into existence.* (He spoke—creation obeyed.) He commands the heavens and all that is in them.* (He speaks—the heavens obey.)

But there is something else that God commands.

It is His lovingkindness.

“The LORD will command His lovingkindness in the daytime…”

(Psalm 42:8)

He commands it every day.

Not every week…

Every day.

All day long, actually.

No doubt about it…if He commands it, His lovingkindness IS going to be there. Nothing escapes God’s command.

Think of it. Our great Creator-God, Commander of anything and everything, condescends to His lowly children to offer, as though handing us intentionally-selected, beautifully-wrapped gifts, His personal lovingkindness. He offers because He wants us to have Him—just as He Himself wants us.

And so, as we sing out “Happy New Year,”

Rejoice!

We can smile after all!

For our true desires can be met in

the lovingkindness of our Lord Himself

that He shares during our sojourning on this infelicitous earth. These glimpses, too substantial, too valuable to be labeled as happiness, transcend every disappointment, every sorrow, every conflict, every trial.

They are as sure as the authority of God by Whom they are sovereignly commanded and precious as the treasure trove of God, from where they are lavishly given.

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Can I bring this down to a personal level?

Does God’s lovingkindness actually intermingle with sin’s sorrow? Should God’s lovingkindness somehow cancel out sin’s sadness?

To negate the darkness of the night,

is to diminish the glory of the sunrise.

I think of a transformative message from Joni Eareckson Tada, in which she boldly declares “suffering is real and it is hard!” Sometimes Christians feel they must “tough it out” by diminishing the reality of their suffering. But to do so then diminishes the glory given to God as He brings us through our suffering.

Many have said to me “I can’t imagine what it’s like [to go through what you have].”

Well, I’ll tell it to you straight.

It’s awful.

Worse than you can imagine, actually.

At least, worse than I ever dreamed possible.

I say this, not to give you a sob story, but because the quote above is true. If I told you anything less, anything more pleasant to the ears, then I would diminish the glory of the Lord’s work through the deep, dark night.

Because, it is ONLY because of Him—because of His lovingkindness—that I can say, in the midst of the shadows, that He is endearingly loving, He is unbelievably comforting, He is incredibly strong. I have found Him to be my greatest Counselor and my most constant Companion. He is my reason for rising in the morning and pressing forward to complete the tasks He has given me—alone, yet not alone.

The truth about God’s lovingkindness being commanded in each day has become significant for our family. Many days of this past 2023 year have been worse than miserable. It hardly seemed possible that there could be any good in them whatsoever. And yet, when we discovered this verse( Psalm 42:8), we acknowledged that if God commands His lovingkindnesses each day, they were there somewhere! We just had to find them.

Many mornings, during our family devotions, we head into the day determined to spot God’s lovingkindnesses (even when we don’t feel like it) and give report of them later, often around a meal or before bed. It has been a healing discipline (albeit difficult), taking our attention from misery to gratefulness—even on the darkest days.

“Do not withhold Your tender mercies from me, O LORD;

Let Your lovingkindness and Your truth continually preserve me.”

(Psalm 40:11)

Although most of our observations have not actually been written down, here are (just a handful of) God’s daily lovingkindnesses in 2023, as stated by various Thomas family members (well, excluding Hadassah):

• We aren’t living in the chicken house!

• Mama still gets to be at home (and not yet needing to work).

• We can pray to Jesus anytime.

• Robin (the horse) nickered at me today.

• I got 100% on my math.

• We had a nice visit with our friends.

• I got a new knife today.

• Our house is warm.

• We got to go swimming.

• We get to be homeschooled.

• I danced barefoot in 3 inches of snow, singing at the top of my voice and ran up the driveway in the dark to the beautiful, lighted entrance at 10pm, as gorgeous snowflakes fell all around me.

• SCUBA training!

• Baby slept through the night.

• Tess (the dog) survived her surgery scare.

• All the stars in the sky tonight.

• I read in my Bible about the hope we have in heaven and I thought of Daddy.

• Mama finished crocheting my blanket (after 6 years!).

• My friend called me today.

• Provision of deer and elk.

• It snowed today.

• That I could see the beautiful sunrise this morning.

• This is the first time I’ve had to buy diapers in over a year! (Due to the year+ supply generously given to us by our church family.)

• I’m almost done with my school for today!

• I got my passport in time to go to Uganda.

• Cricket had her kittens!

• We got to go to the zoo.

• I can still play my harp (for a scheduled event) after I just filed up my fingers doing Robin’s feet (oops).

• I made a sale today.

• The cousins got to come over.

• I talked with Mrs. _ and she’s feeling better.

• Mr. _ gave me some encouraging words.

• The tractor is working.

• I ate the first snow peas from the garden.

May you all have a truly blessed year ahead, comforted to see the promised, preserving lovingkindnesses of our Lord every day in the midst of all the trials of this life…knowing He is near and He has greater things to come!

P.S. Visit the "life in pictures" tab to see some 2023 year highlights.

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*See Romans 8:19-21

*“Let all the earth fear the LORD; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast” (Psalm 33:8-9).

*“I have made the earth, And created man on it. I—My hands—stretched out the heavens, And all their host I have commanded” (Isaiah 45:12).