What did you notice in 2020 that seemed designed by God?

Despite the uniqueness of 2020, God has undoubtedly answered prayers in our families, communities, and in our own hearts. Indeed, God has designed some of this year for our good. For me, in the past several months, I have been inundated with obvious ways God is at work around me. He has given me a lot of merciful clarity and peace on my vocation and about the people he has put in front of me, even in a time where we can’t be around that many people. 

In the midst of this, I have been reading Esther with several college women over the past two months. This Old Testament book takes a deeper investigation to see God in the text through the events surrounding the two main characters in the book, Esther and Mordecai. The answers aren’t obvious like they are in other Old Testament books. The name of God does not even show up in the text.  However, because this is a book of the Bible, we know there must be more than meets the eye. Surely God is there, right? Of course he is — in fact, His design is seen throughout the narrative, but only if we read it in the original language of the text, Hebrew. To me, the coolest way we see God showing up discreetly in this book is through the backward acrostics of the name YHWH in Hebrew. 

There are four instances at key points in the story where the words or phrases in Hebrew spell out one of the names of God backwards. For instance, in Esther 7:5, the words asked by the king, “Who is he, and where is he?” spell EHYH, which translates to “I AM,” or “I AM who I AM,” from Exodus 3:14. The name, “I AM,” is the holiest of names.

The Hidden Ways of God

Much like we might have been pressed to do this year, we must look for God’s designs in places that are oftentimes hidden. He even asks us to look for them (Song of Songs 3:1-5). By spending time in silence and studying Scripture, we can find these sort of hidden ways He expresses His love for us in these biblical stories. Much like our own lives, when we slow down to understand things, His will become clearer. He shows us His presence in beautiful ways, which increases our love and our hope. I am reminded of this scene in The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis where Aslan says: 

I was the lion who gave the Horses the new strength of fear for the last mile so that you should reach King Lune in time. And I was the lion you do not remember who pushed the boat in which you lay, a child near death, so that it came to shore where a man sat, wakeful at midnight, to receive you.

Questions From God and For Us 

Join me in taking time to start 2021 by slowing down to better understand His will and learn new things about our Creator. Meditate on these questions from scripture and then reflect on the below questions in your own life: 

“Is anything too hard for the LORD? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”

Genesis 18:14 ESV

Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me if you understand.

Job 38:4 ESV

He hurls down his crystals of ice like crumbs; who can stand before his cold?

Psalm 147:17 ESV

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Matthew 16:15 NIV

“If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?”

John 3:12 ESV

New Year Reflection Questions

• What has God designed in my life this past year that has shown me His presence? 
• Where in my life do I keep telling myself God has designed, but I don’t see how yet? 
• How can I increase my trust in Him in 2021? 
• Where in life ought I to assume God has designed even if it doesn’t make any sense right now? 
• What in scripture do I want to understand better in 2021 to see His design?

We can have hope for 2021. Hope for a vaccine. Hope for schools and churches to open quickly. Hope for a number of prayers to be answered that we probably have been praying for years and had to put on hold in 2020. Hope for a King who has already come and will come again. So, will you take time to notice God’s designs?