“…this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.
Only let us hold fast to what we have attained.”
---(Philippians 3:13-14, 16 NRSV)
2020, in other words - the great dumpster fire of time - is still with us.
But we believe in new beginnings. Even if this fresh calendar page carries with it no material difference, something intangible within us is starting afresh. Whatever gum from the old year is still stuck on our shoe, we are ready to move on. We are ready to follow the Apostle Paul’s example to the letter. It is hard to imagine a people more eager to forget what lies behind and strain forward to what lies ahead.
As the Black Eyed Peas sang several years ago,
Yes, but…
I am embarrassed to admit that hidden in plain sight within that familiar, forward-leaning resolve of Paul to the Philippians is this other, quieter admonition: "Only hold fast to what we have attained." Don't simply "let go." There are, it turns out, some things to which we would be wise to grip.
It's true. Amidst the understandable grumblings from 2020; interwoven with all the rubble we are determined to roll off the ledge inside of that flaming dumpster, are precious things to hold onto.
These, then, are a few of the elements of 2020 I am determined to retain.
· I learned things about my own resilience and sufficiency that have been life-giving that will serve me well, regardless of 2021 has in store.
· I have learned how superfluous is so much of what I once believed to be essential.
· I have learned that real friendships can transcend all manner of obstacles, and that we are creative enough to fashion bridges over the washed out roads between us.
· As with the myriad capabilities built into our cell phones that we have never figured out how to use, I have learned that the tools we already have in hand represent possibilities we are only beginning to explore and put to use.
· I have learned – again – that books are a cheap way to travel.
· I have learned that petting and throwing a ball to a dog are cheap forms of therapy for which neither insurance nor scheduling is required.
· I have learned that, while every day is serendipitous and I need to be vigilantly open and available to the surprises, I can “build my days” to bend toward the light. I improve my life by measuring and scheduling my “screen time” – not because there is anything intrinsically dangerous about the glass, but because what I experience through that glass in news and social media feeds impacts me, dents and twists and shades me. Only very rarely does it edify me.
· I have learned, then, to be intentional about what I feed my mind and soul first thing in the morning and before closing my eyes at night. If I intend to live long and live well, I will endeavor to feed my heart and soul and mind every bit as nourishingly as I feed my body.
· And I have learned to be grateful – as conscious of what I have as of what I’ve lost; as mindful of what is growing as what has died; as attuned to what is possible as what has been truncated.
· Finally, I have learned that I need to continue paying attention to what I am learning. Otherwise, like so much morning coffee, it simply passes through.
It is only the beginnings of a list. It will not be nostalgia that prompts me to remember more, but rather stewardship. Paul, of course, knew all this. "Yes, yes," I now can hear him say: “forget what lies behind and strain forward toward all that lies ahead.”
But whatever else you do, “hold fast to what we have attained.”
Here’s to 2021 – to forgetting (yes), to straining forward (oh my, Yes), and to holding fast to all we’ve learned.
Yes, yes, indeed.
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