“Realism” so says J. I. Packer, “is a Christian virtue that acknowledges God’s sovereignty over His world. It interprets unexpected disappointments and deferrings of hope as acts of God’s wisdom and goodness, according to His promise. No discouragement, bitterness or cynicism (the wasting diseases of the soul) find a foothold in realistic hearts.” As we leave 2020 and enter 2021 do you and I have realistic hearts? What wisdom did we gain from the past year that will equip us to live well in this new year? May I propose some thoughts that you can ponder in our heart. They are drawn from the Christian Scriptures so are they truths that apply at all times and in all circumstances. Those who walk in pride, God is able to humble. God opposes the proud for they boast of what humans do but fail to glorify God as God nor give him thanks. Covid-19 is a reality God has allowed to turn our entire world upside down and inside out. Every aspect of humanity has been impacted by this pandemic. Government, family, business, sports, entertainment, leisure, travel, church-life and especially our health and safety have all felt the sting of this coronavirus. With the arrival of vaccines many are hoping to make 2020 a distant memory, but as I write a new strain of the virus has appeared. Will the vaccine be effective? At times we may feel we are at the end of our wits. Is it time to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God and seek his face? Is it time to ask him for wisdom in dealing with this all-pervasive issue? Is it time to confess that our cares are too great for us to bear and cast them on the Him, for he cares for the humble. Ponder in our hearts, is God humbling us through this pandemic? God’s will trumps our plans and expectations. It is not wrong for us to plan for the future or take steps to improve our lives. With its protocols, our government has tried to balance our life and our livelihoods, our health and our economy. But the reality is that our life is uncertain for we do not even know what will happen tomorrow. Our life is as fragile and as brief as a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. To presume that time is on our side and under our control, and that our plans are sure to succeed to our benefit is foolish and the height of arrogance. Instead, we ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” This is the realistic wisdom that God gives. For some, the truth that God is control of all things brings great comfort in the midst of a chaotic world, but for others it that grates across their souls like chalk on a blackboard. Realism from God asks us one simple question: “What is your life?” Accepting the reality that God (not us) is in control frees us from bitterness and anger when our expectations and hopes do not unfold as we had arranged. Ponder in your heart, is God in control of all of life, even your life? God’s love is a reality upon which we can depend. Currently the horizon of all our lives is dominated by the coronavirus. Its infection rates, death tolls, the misery it has inflicted among our seniors and the financial duress that it has placed on so many people must not be underestimated nor softened. But there is another horizon in our world that must never forget. It is an historical reality. It is a personal reality. It is God’s love. A love that He has showed among us when he sent His Son, Jesus Christ, into our world in which disease, suffering and death have always been realities. God’s love for the world is great. Not because the world is so big that it takes a great deal of love for God to love us all, but because the world is so bad that it takes a special love from God to love us at all. God loved us when we did not love him. God’s love is extended to those who are undeserving and ill-deserving. His love is seen at its greatest when He did not spare his own Son but delivered him up to the cross to put away our sins by the sacrifice of himself. Through Christ Jesus, God promises us eternal life after death and the hope of glory when the Lord Jesus comes again. Realism does not stick its head in the sand when faced with the uncertainties of life in 2021 but it fills its horizon with the greater reality of the love of God for us in Christ Jesus. Ponder in your heart that God loves you and invites you to open your heart to his love. Ponder, do you have a realistic heart? Pastor Warren Charlton Two Hills Fellowship Chapel