Social media is filled with the plaintive cries of young people who are dismayed at how the year 2016 has turned out, egged on by Buzzfeed articles that harp on all the ways 2016 was a horrible, no good, very bad year.
And, according to the Internet, 2017 isn't going to be any better.
I get it. No, really, I do. A lot of celebrities passed away this year, which was disheartening for many. Our country was up in arms against each other for the latter half of the year in the midst of Trump-Clinton drama. A lot of people our age weren't happy with the election results this November. Some are worried about how our new president and his cabinet will shape our country over the next four years.
I understand people's disappointment and concerns, really.
But could we maybe stop complaining about how terrible of a year 2016 was?
If we're honest with ourselves, we can agree that 2016 was not completely horrid; after all, none of us have spent it wallowing in misery.
I mean, we all just spent Christmas with our loved ones. As far as I can tell, the holidays have not, in fact, been ruined by the quality of 2016 as a whole.
Furthermore, we all live in America. We all have access to the technology and social media that we're using to turn around and complain about how awful our year was.
I'm pretty sure the Christians in Aleppo (and many other places) who are currently being persecuted are having a worse year than any of us.
I'm pretty sure those whose lives have been ravaged by acts of terror are having a worse year than we are.
May we have some perspective, please?
Because we live in a country where we want for nothing. We live in a country where we have the freedom to speak our minds-- and yes, that does include complaining.
But complaining has never and will never actually change anything. It's one of the most unproductive ways you could approach this year.
If you don't want 2017 to be as terrible as 2016 allegedly was? Do something about it. Turn your frustrations into productive means of helping others, and perhaps you'll spark a change.
Granted, I'm not saying that this world isn't broken. It is, undeniably, and unfortunately it's not going to get any less broken next year.
I'm simply reminding us all that as Americans, we have been blessed with so much, with the resources and freedom to both live in comfort and to help others. Let's not take that for granted.
And of course, there's the most important reminder of all: that our King is still very much on His throne, and nothing can happen next year that He didn't already know about. There is absolutely nothing that can change the fact that God is still God, regardless of election outcomes or persecution or any of this world's brokenness. And in the end, He will make all things new, and it will be beautiful. We can be confident in that. Our hope is in the Lord.
So-- Happy New Year, friends. Happy fresh chapter of this thing called life. Happy year of trusting in God's faithfulness and not allowing the world's brokenness to drag us into the depths of despair and complaints. Happy 2017.
Let's start off 2017 with a bit of optimism and gratitude, yeah?
