So, we ask this question, “Will 2022 be better than 2021?”
The answer lies in one’s definition of “better” and how much one allows our distressed world to impact that definition.
Psalm 63:3-4 reminds us …
Because Your loving kindness is better than life, my lips will praise You. So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.
The Hebrew word, “towb” is an adjective (rarely used in the O. T. language) which denotes a clarification or serves as a modifier to another word. In this usage, “better” implies delightfully good in every sense! Therefore, in essence and context, our Lord’s lovingkindness is better than life itself!
In this case, King David feasted upon the spiritual delicacies of his relationship with the Lord, rather than any material objects or anything this world offered/afforded him. This human found extreme satisfaction in simply praising God! It brought great joy and abiding comfort to his own soul. He praised God for His “lovingkindness” (Hebrew – checed; meaning His steadfast love; grace; mercy; faithfulness; goodness; and devotion) which according to Psalm 63:1, David thought more of than life-sustaining water! Wow, what an implausible perspective – a genuine, as well as authentic, understanding of that which actually makes life a blessing – and well worth the living.
Then we have the marvelous revelation of Psalm 118:8-9 …
It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man (an individual, human being, mankind). It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes (any form of governmental authority or power).
It is far wiser, more comfortable, and safer — in fact, there is more reason to trust in the Lord than anything — if one is devoted to His guidance and governing with an entire dependence upon God’s wisdom, power, goodness and grace.
True confidence in one’s Lord, if it’s Christ alone, works to make a human believer invincible and fearless. Consider the courage of Moses, Daniel, the three Hebrew young men, Nehemiah, and the statement of the apostle Paul to the Elders at Ephesus in Acts 20:24 concerning his own unknown future as he traveled to Jerusalem.
But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God.
In the account given in Hebrews 10:32-36, the author speaks to believers who have suffered for Christ’s sake, declaring that they all have a “better possession and a lasting one” than that of the properties they lost to seizure. Then they are reminded in the midst of their suffering to, “not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.”
Paul has a somewhat confusing outlook about “better” — at least from a human viewpoint.
For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake.
So, will 2022 be a better year?
Is the Lord’s lovingkindness better than life?
Is the Lord truly one’s refuge, better than that of any human or institution?
Is the possession of Christ’s promises better than any other possession?
For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in You!
Psalm 84:10-12
I’m sincerely and steadfastly praying for you, your family, and our entire ministry at WOF, that 2022 will be a better year as we fully embrace His promises, recognizing that His lovingkindness is better than life itself, find our refuge in Him, and dwell in His courts. -PF