I’ve had two words on my letterboard for the last couple of weeks:
“Rebuild stronger.”
(Actually, right now it reads, “Rebuild sronger.” My sister pointed out that I was tired when I spelled it out and missed the t, and have yet to add it. Full disclosure.)
Each glance at those two words is encouraging. Why? Because 2020 broke me, broke us down in every way possible. But in 2021, we can rebuild even stronger.
I always pick a word or phrase to return to over the next year, and “rebuild stronger” is what I’ve picked for 2021. It would be easy to simply say “rebuild” and to work on returning the status quo. But what if that isn’t where we need to return?
For all the atrocities it has contained, 2020 has done a very good job of making all flaws, whether in our personal lives or our society, exposed. It has ripped down a curtain, exposing everything that was not serving us well and all the areas where change should be encouraged. And 2020 in its very essence will alter the way work and life and community function in the future.
2020 broke us down, but we shouldn’t be rebuilding back to 2019. Instead, we should take a good long look at what life looks like right now and what it should look like at the end of 2021.
What habits and practices no longer serve you and should change? What does your workflow need to look like? Your wellness routines? Your financial management?
How should your spiritual rhythms and habits be rebuilt to urge you more toward Jesus in the new year?
Psalm 71:20 says,
“You who have made me see many troubles and calamities will revive me again; from the depths of the earth you will bring me up again.”
We have been broken, but revival and restoration are around the corner. It’s time to rebuild and to rebuild stronger.
How will you rebuild in 2021?
KELVEY OLIVIA VANDER HART 