The Gate of the Year!

It may not be altogether wise to refer to the Chinese at this time, but I believe that they are the only nation to give specific names to each calendar year. The year 2020, that is now coming to an end, was named "The Year of the Rat". Rats are powerful symbols of fertility, wealth and plenty, so people born in the Year of the Rat are considered to be optimistic, easy-going and kind, if a bit too direct. I wonder if the year will be looked back on as The Year of the Mask! I should note, by the way, that the Chinese New Year is a movable event, and that, for the Chinese, 2021 will not commence until Feb.12th!

I end the annual newsletter that my wife and I send out at this time, with these words: “So another, and most unusual, year has come to an end.  It would be a brave person who, with the evidence of the past 12 months to recall, would forecast anything about 2021. However, this is where we believe that our Christian faith is of great importance.  As someone once said: “We may not know what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future.”

Of course, 2020 has not been the only year in which there has been a worldwide crisis. In September 1939, Great Britain had entered what was to become the Second World War - just 21 years after the war to end all wars! The current Queen was, at that time the thirteen-year-old Princess Elizabeth. Her father, George VI was the reigning monarch and, as had become the custom, he spoke to the nation, by radio, on Christmas Day. In those uncertain last days of 1939, the king spoke words of peace that sought to calm the nation. He reminded them of the only true King, the One Who, alone, can provide true peace and real rest in such troubled times.  As he concluded his message of encouragement, he read the preamble of a poem that had been brought to his attention by the young Princess Elizabeth.

The poem that the Princess brought to her father’s attention was written by British poet Minnie Louise Haskins (1875-1957).  Published in 1908 it was titled God Knows. Years later, the poem gained popularity with a new title, The Gate of the Year, taken from the poem’s first line. It reads:

"And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:

“Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown.”

And he replied:

“Go out into the darkness and put your hand in the Hand of God.  That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.”

So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night. And He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone East."  

King George read the poem to reassure the British people that their future was secure - in the hands of God. That wisdom that was true for the British people then, is also true for all of us today!

As the new year dawns, let us remember that God is our only safe harbour. He is our only true hope. He will lead and direct our lives when we put our trust in Him.  If we are willing to allow Him, He will light our path, and direct our steps, as we enter this new year.

We may not know what the future holds - but we may, through a saving faith in the Lord Jesus, know Him Who holds the future.

May all who read this blog post enjoy that relationship, and have a very good New Year. 

Why blog?

If my calculations are correct, this is the beginning of my tenth year of blogging (I'm not counting the couple of posts at the end of 2007!). I didn't give any thought as to the length of time for which I would maintain my blog. I suppose that it's a bit like my marriage! On my wedding day, I did not ask myself if the young woman to whom I was being married, and I, would still be together more than 46 years later - and with no intention of changing that situation! But we are!!

When I started my blog, I did so with the idea that it would be an additional area of ministry. However, even then I suspected that I would stray into other areas!  That is why the heading states that the blog is:

"The personal musings, and other writings, of a Ross who has maintained the Clan's ecclesiastical link! This is an unashamedly Christian ministry blog. Many of the posts are comments on current affairs, from a Biblical perspective, but I also include some straightforward Christian teaching; poems and songs that I have written; quotable quotes; and information on the persecuted church. Some of my posts stray into politics, and science!" 

My friend, David Robertson - who has been quoted on this blog on more than one occasion - recently wrote on his own blog (www.theweeflea.com): "The Lord has given us minds to think and to try and work out, in the light of His Word, where we are at and what is happening. That is all I am trying to do. In effect this blog is my thinking out loud, and trying to read the world, in the light of God’s word. In that I believe I am fulfilling not only the Creation mandate but also that of Paul in Romans 12: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God - this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will.”"

That, I would claim, is the rationale behind my own blog. It is personal; it has, on occasion, been controversial; it even cost me my Police Force Chaplaincy. However, I trust that it has never been offensive, and that, sometimes, it might even be helpful. I welcome comments and, when I was able to do so, published all apart from the abusive, crude, or blasphemous ones. I am always contactable through the e-mail address provided at the top of the page.

I do try to publish regularly, but only if I have something to say! It may be going too far to say that I am always inspired (sometimes I have spent a number of hours on just one post!), but I am always sincere in what I share. I know that the blog is read by a fair number of people, and would love to have it read by even more. However, one of my fundamental beliefs is that Almighty God is Sovereign. That means that nothing can, or will, happen outwith His knowledge and permission. So I am content that He will lead, to my blog, anyone He wishes to have read a particular post!

If you are one of those who has been following this blog for a long time, then I thank you for your support - whether, or not, you have joined the 'select' group which is displayed in the right-hand-side! Of course, it would be encouraging if many more were to join with that group!! If you are new to the blog, then I welcome you, and trust that you will become a regular reader. If you do, you will be joining with folk from more than a dozen countries around the world (see the bottom of the right-hand-side for details). 

Please feel free to advertiser the blog to your own friends. The greater the number of "hits", the higher is the Google ranking - and that means (I think!) that when someone instigates a Google search on one of the labels on a post, my blog moves towards the earliest sites that are suggested! 

Let me end with those well-known words of Minnie Louise Haskins:

And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: "Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown."

And he replied: "Go out into the darkness and put your hand in the Hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way."

So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night. And He led me towards the hills and the breaking of day in the lone East."

May you know His leading throughout the coming year - and until your time on this earth is done. Blessings, and shalom.

He knows the way.

Many will be familiar with the words that will, undoubtedly, be repeated by many as we draw towards the end of another calendar year - those words quoted by King George VI in his 1939 Christmas radio broadcast to the nation and the Commonwealth.   Those words, written by Minnie Louise Haskins, are:

"And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
'Give me a light, that I may tread safely into the unknown!'
And he replied:
'Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God.
That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.'"

The Old Testament character, Job, would have agreed.  Indeed, he went even further!   In Job 32:10, we read: "But He knows the way that I take; when He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold."  Job saw that the way, while safe in the hands of Father God, is not always, or necessarily, easy.  But he found infinite comfort in the assurance that He knows the way!

Too often, we want to know what God is doing to us and, in those moments of darkness, we may cry out: "Why is this happening to me?"  It is then that faith answers: "He knows"!

David, the Psalmist-king of Israel knew all about this.  The opening lines of Psalm 13 are a repetition of the question "How long?"  He saw the forces that were opposed to him.  He was concerned that YHWH had forgotten him.  He was in deep distress, and sorrow.  However, when we look at the end of the psalm we read these words:

"But I have trusted in Thy steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation.  I will sing to YHWH, because He has dealt bountifully with me." (vs.5-6).  David had become convinced that "He knows"!

Are you passing through some deep trial at this time?  Is the coming Christmas and New Year clouded with anxiety; with pain; with darkness; with uncertainty?  Do you not know in which direction to turn?  Then I would encourage you to memorise Job 23:10, and to keep repeating it to yourself until you really believe it.  Whatever the situation, or circumstances, it makes such a difference when we are assured that "He knows"!