2020 – What a Fight!

While I was growing up in the 80’s, Mike Tyson was the one of the more fascinating athletes to watch.

The problem was, he took guys out at lighting speed.  If you wanted to watch him fight, you didn’t dare blink. 

Here are Mike’s fastest knockouts:
– K.O. in 39 seconds: Ricardo Spain
– K.O. in 39 seconds: Michael Johnson
– K.O. in 38 seconds: Lou Savarese
– K.O. in 37 seconds: Robert Colay
– K.O. in 30 seconds: Marvis Frazier

If you’re at all feeling like I am right now towards the end of 2020, it feels like Mike Tyson just showed up and knocked me out in less than 30 seconds.

At the real heart of 2020 wasn’t a Mike Tyson punch, Covid-19, social discourse, or crazy elections.

It was time!

Time well spent, time lost, time ticking off click, time to do nothing, time without friends and family, time for what?

How did you spend 2020?

I have a laundry list of Netflix and Apple TV shows I binged.  I watched presidential debates and elections that left me in tears and anger that our country was crumbling before my very eyes.

I saw a disease suck the very life out of people that were living well, honest and hopeful.

Many weeks I just grieved for what felt like an enormous amount of hopelessness.

Like many, I didn’t grieve well but mostly with an abundance of wonderment about what the hell was going on.

I was told to isolate, when my heart said associate and I questioned the very life God has so graciously given me.

Should we be surprised by any of this?  No, the Bible speaks of plagues and famine, this isn’t our first rodeo.

So, what is it in this time and place that we feel cut off, and uninformed when all our questions are answered in seconds by Alexa?

If you find yourself flipping through the newspaper, watching the news, or turning to social media for help, sorry you’ve come to the wrong place.

Did I question God’s will for several weeks in 2020?  Yes, I bet you did too.

How did that work out for you?  It didn’t work well for me!

If your heart feels heavy, full of loss, or you’re just wondering what to do next, keep turning to God because He won’t turn on you!

Isaiah 31 reminds us, “but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.”

Don’t be fooled, when the calendar flips to 2021 nothing will change, and you will take another punch from Mike Tyson if you don’t mount up on eagles’ wings.

2020 taught me a lot of things, not the least of which is, my time is better spent trusting Him, not taking punches from Mike Tyson.