Honestly, The Year’s Not Over & It’s Not Too Late To Hope Things Can Change

These aren’t normal days.

“And who, in these strange, uncommon days, isn’t stirred to rise, to hear the call, while there’s still time, to turn around, return to the One who is returning, turn our faces to Jesus who is the Life, the only One who can turn in us any new leaves, and give even us, even now, down to less than the last 100 days left in this year, actual new life. “

The last few weeks, I just keep thinking this… 

I happened to note Rosh Hoshanah on my calendar this year… Sept. 22nd. Rosh Hoshanah, the first day of the Jewish New Year — which, this year, also marked the last 100 days of the  year. 

And, strikingly, from sundown on the 22nd, till sundown on the 24th, in Jewish synagogues across the world, a ram’s horn, a shofar, was blown exactly 100 times – to mark the 1st day of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, literally the “head of the year,” which is the Feast of Trumpets, that we read of in Lev. 23:24 ESV:  “you shall observe a day of solemn rest, a memorial proclaimed with blast of trumpets.”

100 times, the blast of a ram’s horn split the air and roused all the weary’s attention for the last 100 days of the year. That ram’s horn may not be pretty; but it sure is pretty honest. It’s not seeking applause; it’s seeking an awakening. It’s the call to: Rise. 

And who, in these strange, uncommon days, isn’t stirred to rise, to hear the call, while there’s still time, to turn around, return to the One who is returning, turn our faces to Jesus who is the Life, the only One who can turn in us any new leaves, and give even us, even now, down to less than the last 100 days left in this year, actual new life. 

It might seem like these last few weeks, when our way of counting time with our old Gregorian calendars, are saying that this year is waning thin, limping to some tender end, and  it’d be easy to think the gig’s about up, that we’ve about run out of time on the clock for this year, but this is precisely when, according to the timeline of God, we get a new beginning, a new year, a fresh start, “a head of the year.”  

I marked Rosh Hoshana, on my calendar this year, Sept 22, like my own not-too-late-new-year, and I wrote it down too, because who doesn’t need all this: “repentance… return…. readiness… … renewal… resolutions… revival… RISING!” 

Then, after the Jewish New Year of Rosh Hoshana, there are these 10 days on the calendar that are traditionally known as the 10 Days of Awe, but I only remembered that again after Ty Smith stood up at The Village Table and  read those words aloud in the middle of the community worship night: “Jesus was walking ahead of them. The disciples were filled with awe, and the people following behind were overwhelmed with fear.” Mark 10:32 NLT

“Followers of God are fueled by awe; followers of media can be frozen by fear. “

And while Ty is still holding the microphone, before Laura steps in to sing worship again, all I can think is: 

Disciples of God are full of awe, 

while followers of all kinds of media, are full of fear. 

Followers of God are fueled by awe; followers of media can be frozen by fear. 

Which one will I be? 

The Farmer gently puts his hand on my shoulder, and Laura hums quietly, hands clasped, and the sanctuary of the old stone church quietly trembles with all these hushed voices praying and will we live with awe of God, or fear of the future? 

Apparently, during what is known as these 10 Days of Awe, or the 10 Days of Repentance, between Rosh Hoshanah, and Yom Kippur, the day of Atonement, the Jewish people traditionally practice Tashlich, recalling and repenting of what they’ve done wrong, and then tossing bits of bread, one for each recalled sin, into a body of water and then watching it float away.

“When you see who you are, and who is God, how can there be anything but awe? “

Are the 10 Days of Awe more than wonder of the glory  of God in sky and sun and dappled light in gnarled maple trees, but awe that all the broken things can be undone and remade by God?

What stirs greater awe than that we can repent and our souls be cleansed and cleaned by the grace of God, so we can experience more than just a new year, but a new way of living? 

Then Laura’s voice leads, sings the melody again, “Holy, holy, holy… holy, holy, holy,” and all our voices gathered under the sanctuary’s old wooden beams lift and rise, rise… God is light; in Him is no darkness at all and how can all our hands not rise –rise, rise – because haven’t the people walking in darkness seen a great light? 

And how can we not feel all this awe that He lifts the chin, awe that His incomparable love comes for even us, that His majesty cleanses our deepest depravity, that His holiness covers our impossible brokenness, that His purity touches all our errancy, that His wholly otherness kisses us to life with His life laid down, with a love that loves us to death and back to renewed life… awe, awe, awe. 

When you see who you are, and who is God, how can there be anything but awe? 

And then Laura’s voice fills the sanctuary with the refrain and we all sing:

“With every breath that I am able, oh, I will sing of the goodness of God, ’cause Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me…” 

And tears run down my face.

Who is this Holy Love that runs after even us with wholly goodness?

Your goodness is running after, it’s running after me. 

You know you’ve really moved into the presence of God when you’re so in awe of His goodness, you’re moved to repent of all the awful brokenness.

Real awe of God’s holy goodness moves a soul to wholly repent. 

“You know you’ve really moved into the presence of God when you’re so in awe of His goodness, you’re moved to repent of all the awful brokenness.“

Laura’s voice rises, and Ty prays, and the community praises, and holy awe and healing repentance unexpectedly bring me right down to my knees. And maybe when tears fall, this too is a kind of Tashlich during the 10 Days of repenting Awe, just undone by all kinds of sins and broken things, personal and painful, collective and contagious, and tears can wash and cleanse what we are desperate to cast away, so we too can begin again anew.  

To repent is to return to the real way through.  

And revival is about first things returning to first place.

And how can the people of God, personally and collectively, look for a season of revival, if we don’t have our own season of holy awe and complete and wholly repentance, our own season of soul reflection? 

How are we missing out on being truly marked by God – if we don’t have a regular rhythm that truly reflects on how we’ve missed the mark? 

When I happen to mark the last 100 days of the year, which coincide this year with marking the New Year on the Jewish Calendar, and the tradition of the ensuing 10 Days of Awe – the 10 days of Repentance –  these unparalleled days turn a new leaf … toward unparalleled hope… hope of revival, personally and collectively. 

Long after Laura sings the last worship song, the Farmer and I linger, still bowed and repenting and not ready to move on from this holy awe. 

Hope always rises on the days when we’ve been on our knees.

The BEST Little Journals Gifts and Gratitudes

When the ache feels like more than the heart can carry — try gently picking up a pen and looking for gifts of grace, even here, to count, all from a good and relentlessly loving God who draws near with grace upon grace in our heartache.

With spacious lines to name three gifts each day, and uniquely formatted to daily see how God has shown up with gifts on this day of the month, on all the previous months, Gifts & Gratitudes gently helps grow trust in a God who doesn’t always explain our suffering but who always enters into it with us. Taking pen to paper each day will help trace God’s goodness and keep a record of gratitude. And because of Jesus… there is always, always, always something —Someone — to be thankful for. 

If you’re seeking deeper peace, in a world of tender pain…. if you’re looking for hope in the midst of all kinds of hurt… beginning this daily practice of looking for Gifts & Gratitudes helps you see the way forward. 

When you don’t know what or who to count on tomorrow… if you start counting Gifts & Gratitudes — your eyes… and heart… begin to open to Who you can always count on…. especially on the hardest days.

Sacred Prayer

When we retreat from the world to pray, to wait, to hope in God—we find true and beautiful perspective for our souls. Real prayer isn’t about changing God’s mind, but about finding God’s heart, and letting His heart change our minds!

Prayer, communion, and connection with God is a life-changing discipline and gift. Prayer will strengthen your heart by:

Growing your relationship with and faith in GodTransforming you to be more like Jesus Aligning your thoughts and actions with the Bible Reducing stress and worry and increasing your peace

Take this sacred journey of prayer with me over the course of 90 days and be in awe of how God moves in your life and in your heart!

When you need hope, the first place to look is by getting down on your knees.