Takeaways and Looks Ahead - Episode 40
So I decided to do a different thing as the year ends and the new one begins. I asked five different women what their takeaways were from 2020, and what they see for 2021. Their answers were varied, insightful, and will have a lasting impact on me. (Notice my sound effects, moans of affirmation really, when something resonates with me, and my ongoing effusive “I love that!” as you listen.)
You’ll hear from Amanda, Emily, Arlana, Val and Scotti, all previous guests on this podcast. Enjoy the conversation. I sure did.
Maybe you have given some thought to takeaways from 2020, how we can be, and do things differently. It needs to start with each one of us as individuals. How can we expect from others what we are not willing to be ourselves? I have no doubt you have reached conclusions about this past year and have thoughts about heading into a new one. I hope this conversation gives you more food for thought that can spur you on to be fully you on the one hand, and completely enough on the other. They go together.
2020: Perspective and priorities.
2021: Opportunities and ownership.
— Amanda, episode 7, Shall we Be British Today?
Peace of mind. You don’t need to know the journey to believe in the outcome.
Regardless of the destination; enjoy the road.
— Emily, episode 13, Daisies Help Me Breathe
Be still and know: God’s got this.
There is a proverbial light at the end of the tunnel - luminosity.
— Arlana, episode 30, The Wizard of Oz is Like Breathing to Me
Reframe the anger and hatred that come from fear.
Maybe we can do something about that.
I have so much hope for 2021.
— Val, episode 36, Chuck the Mold. I Don’t Fit It
I can do more than I ever thought I could.
We flourished BECAUSE it happened. We survived. Now we can get back to basics.
— Scotti, episode 33, I Will Not Be Silent
HOPE
Thoughts from Takeaways and Looks Ahead
Hope. It’s a word, a concept, a truth. For some it means to wish something, a synonym even. It is listed as such along with the definition in the dictionary: longing, dream. When I think of hope I like the following definitions. (Remember, I am a word nerd.). The Hebrew definition: expectation, cord or rope which comes from the root word that means to bind or to wait upon. The biblical definition: the confident expectation of what God has promised and its strength in his faithfulness.
The first definition seems to rely on us. What we want to see happen. What we long for or dream about. Nothing wrong with this. It’s a beginning but there is nothing to sink my teeth into. It’s not enough for me. Nothing that will sustain my longings or dreams because I can’t do it on my own.
The last two definitions go outside of us. They bring a richer, more meaningful reality to what hope is. It is more than wishing. It is knowing God will do what only God can. We trust in that. We wait for that. We don’t always get what we long for. Sometimes it’s even better. Now glory be to God, who by his mighty power at work within us is able to do far more than we would ever dare to ask or even dream of—infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, or hopes. Ephesians 3:20 TLB
But sometimes it’s not better. What about COVID? What about racial injustice? What about political division and its ugliness? We live in an imperfect world. That is for sure. We have free will and we don’t always use it wisely. Yet as we end 2020 and head into 2021 I choose to have hope in all its definitions. I long for the virus to go away. I dream there will be healing for all races (any groups, really) who have been oppressed. I expect us to be bound by our common humanity as I hold on to God’s promises. No matter what I will hope. Always.
May each new year, each new day, be filled with hope.
Happy 2021.
— Rechelle
