A long time ago, there lived a weak and weary people.  King after terrible king led them closer to the brink of disaster.  One day a sixteen-year-old boy assumed the throne. Against all odds he accomplished the impossible - he won battles, unified the people, and secured their nation’s borders.  He became their “hope.”  His name was King Uzziah.  Around 740 B.C., he did one more unthinkable thing.  He died.  The people’s once bright future gone.  Have you ever had that happen?  One diagnosis.  In a moment, it can feel like hope itself died. 

Have you ever felt that?  You pray … But nothing changes and you begin to occupy your new world.  Perhaps you’re facing this new year with similar emotions.  If so, I have a verse for you.  Remember Isaiah 6?  Isaiah sees God seated on a throne, surrounded by fiery angels crying, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD!” (Isaiah 6:3)  Rewind back to verse 1.  Isaiah writes, “In the year that King Uzziah died…”  I heard a pastor say that Isaiah may as well have written, “In the year we lost all hope, I saw the Lord.”  What powerful words!  You could write:

In the year my child died, I saw the Lord.
In the year I was diagnosed with cancer, I saw the Lord.
In the year I lost my marriage, I saw the Lord.
In the year I came to the end of myself, I saw the Lord.

Here’s the thing. Just as one moment of tragedy can change everything, one glimpse of Christ can change everything.  Isaiah sees himself as an unclean sinner, redeemed and chosen by God.  With radical devotion, he cries out, “Here I am! use me.” (verse 8)  It’s believed he’s the martyr mentioned in Hebrews 11:37 who was sawn in two for his faith. (Yikes) Isaiah’s life changed when he encountered Christ, against a backdrop of hopelessness.

As we face a new year, the world tells us circumstances reign supreme.  Are you rich or poor?  Unemployed?  Healthy or sick?  God’s manner of blessing isn’t a Santa Clause theology that says, “Be good, and you’ll get what you want.” Rather, God gives out of the bottomless depths of His love, which cries, “I alone am good and the greatest gift is becoming more like Me.”  How can God use the trials you face this year to make you more like Christ?  In the weeks following my wife’s illness, I saw the Lord.  The more I sat in His presence, the more I saw His heart.  It’s still difficult – many days I say “Lord I believe, help my unbelief.”  This year my prayer is that you may see the Lord in the midst of trials and tragedy, in the midst of fear and failure.  This year may you see the Lord, and may He become your Living Hope. (1 Peter 1:3)