It is hard to believe that 20 years ago we were partying like it was 1999. Do you remember where you were as you brought in the new millennium? I was at Lake Eola in downtown Orlando with my fiancé, now wife, and good friend Jeremy and his girlfriend, now wife. We couldn’t help but wonder if all the power would go out in the high-rise buildings because of the Y2K bug. There is no doubt much has changed in my life since that time. Much has changed in the world since that time. We live in a world that is changing faster than ever before. This is not new news to anyone, but as we approach 2020, I took some time to reflect on some of what has changed, as well as things I know will never change.
It is fun to think about all that is new in the past 20 years. It is hard to imagine life today without smartphones, Wi-Fi, social media, Google Maps, or the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Here is a quick list of 20 things that didn’t exist 20 years ago.
- Smartphones (iPhone, Android, etc.)
- Social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.)
- Apple products (iPad, iPod, Apple Watch, Apple Pencil, HomePod, etc.)
- Video streaming (YouTube, Vimeo, Tik Tok, etc.)
- Audio streaming (Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, etc.)
- TV streaming (Netflix, Hulu, Sling, etc.)
- Video calls (Facetime, Skype, Google Hangout, etc.)
- Virtual assistants (Siri, Alexa, etc.)
- GPS on mobile (Google Maps, Apple Maps, Waze, etc.)
- Wi-Fi
- Gmail
- Wikipedia
- Online Banking
- MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Airbnb
- Uber
- Xbox
- GrubHub and Doordash
- Amazon Prime
- Bitcoin
On the flip side, several things were a normal part of life 20 years ago that our children have no clue about. Our children don’t get to go into a KB Toys or Toys R Us and dream of all they want. They don’t understand making a mixtape or how to use an encyclopedia. They have no idea about a fax machine or answering machine. They would probably go crazy if they had to hear the sounds of dial-up internet.
Here are 20 things that have disappeared (or almost disappeared) over the past 20 years.
- Popular stores like Radio Shack, Circuit City, Blockbuster, Borders and B. Dalton Bookstores, KB Toys, Toys R Us, and Sports Authority
- Calling the movie theater to ask for movie times
- Calling collect
- Making a mixtape
- Using an address book
- Using a printed map
- Cursive handwriting
- Print pictures and photo albums
- CDs (or cassettes or records)
- Dictionaries and encyclopedias
- Home phones and landlines
- Fax machines
- Answering machines
- Pagers
- Payphones and phone books
- Dial-up internet
- Lighters in cars
- Slide projectors
- Floppy disks
- Travel agents
In a world of change, however, some things will never change. First, and most importantly, God will never change. He is our Rock and our Foundation. He is our Stabilizer. God, Himself, says in Malachi 3:6, “I am the Lord, and I do not change.”
Here are 20 things we can have confidence that will not be changing in 2020; the first ten are about God, and the second ten are about you.
1. God (Psalm 102:26-27)
God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. God is not going to change His mind. Time does not affect God. He is still the same today as when He created the world. The same as when He sent His only Son into the world to redeem the world. No matter how uncertain your life looks, you can trust in God since He will never change.
No matter how uncertain your life looks, you can trust in God since He will never change. Click To Tweet2. God’s Word (Isaiah 40:8)
The grass withers, and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God stands forever. From the beginning of time, our enemy has tried to discredit and diminish the Word of God, but it has stood the test of time. The French philosopher Voltaire once said, “A hundred years from my death, the Bible will be a museum piece.” In a bit of irony, one hundred years after his death, the French Bible Society established its headquarters in Voltaire’s home. We can trust the Bible, for it will never change.
3. God’s love (John 3:16)
I learned more about God the moment I saw my first-born child than at any other time in my life. I immediately understood unconditional love. There was nothing I would not do for my child. What I can’t comprehend of God’s love is His willingness to send His Son as a sacrifice for my sins, and yet, that is the foundation of Christianity. Regardless of where I find myself, God’s love will never change.
Regardless of where I find myself, God’s love will never change. Click To Tweet4. God’s grace (II Corinthians 12:9)
Grace has been defined as one receiving that which he does not deserve. Through God’s grace, I receive salvation. Through God’s grace, I wake up each morning, breath, walk, eat, work, etc. Daily I am reminded of God’s grace, and it will never change.
5. God’s forgiveness (I John 1:9)
There are many lessons we can learn from the Apostle Paul. One is the scope of God’s forgiveness. Saul was public enemy number one to the early church until God changed his life. It shows there is no sin too egregious for God not to forgive. No matter what one has done, God is willing to forgive, if we confess. Scripture says He is faithful and just to forgive, and that will never change.
No matter what one has done, God is willing to forgive, if we confess. Click To Tweet6. God’s mercy (Ephesians 2:4)
Mercy has been defined as one not receiving that which he does deserve. What do I deserve? I deserve to be eternally separated from a holy and just God. Through His mercy, because I have asked for His forgiveness and received His grace, I do not have to spend eternity apart from God. I am thankful that His mercies are new every morning.
7. God’s power (Luke 1:37)
One of the overlooked lessons of the Christmas story is God’s power. As the angel was announcing the birth of Christ to Mary, he states, “For with God nothing will be impossible.” One of the overlooked realities today is the power of God in our lives that we receive when the Holy Spirit has come upon us.
8. God’s presence (Matthew 28:20)
The concluding statement of the Great Commission is an assurance of God’s presence. He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us.
9. God’s desire for all to come to repentance (II Peter 3:9)
Jesus said that He came into the world to seek and to save that which was lost. As we read the parables of Luke 15, one principle consistently taught is a celebration when the lost is found. God is not willing that any should perish, but desires for all to come to repentance. That was true when it was written, and it will always be true.
God is not willing that any should perish, but desires for all to come to repentance. Click To Tweet10. God’s ways are not your ways (Isaiah 55:8-9)
In our world of chaos and change, there are many things we will not understand. God may be at work, and you may not recognize it. God is infinitely wiser and more knowledgeable than we will ever be. I can trust each day that He knows what He is doing and that it is ultimately for His glory and my good.
11. You can’t please everybody (Galatians 1:10)
I am a people-pleaser. You may be, too. It is hard for me to tell people, “No.” I have agonized over letting people down. I have learned that I can never please everyone. I know that will never change. My goal now – I want my desire to be to please the Lord.
12. You will never catch up to the Joneses (I John 2:15-17)
I will admit, in my earlier years, I struggled with this idea. What I learned in my continual attempt to catch up to the Joneses is they are not standing still. The closer I seemed to get the further they moved away. Rather than chasing after them, I must strive to not fall in love with the world or the things in the world.
What I learned in my continual attempt to catch up to the Joneses is they are not standing still. The closer I seemed to get the further they moved away. Click To Tweet13. You can never get back yesterday (Isaiah 43:18-19)
There are lessons I can learn from my past, but I can never go back there. There are plenty of points in time I wish I could go back to and change, but I can’t. Both the good and the bad, they have helped make me who I am today. Today, God is doing a new thing, and He has called me to join Him.
14. You won’t know what any single day may bring (Proverbs 27:1)
I do my best to be a planner. I spend the last few minutes of each day planning the next. Sometimes what I plan is what happens, but many times it is not. You never know what could happen on any given day. I must look at each day as a gift, embrace it, and enjoy it.
15. You will reap what you sow (Galatians 6:7)
This is a fundamental principle of life. It is true for the farmer planting seeds in the field, and it is true for the suburbanite planting seeds in his family. I am not sure who first made this statement, but there is truth in it. Sow a thought and you reap an action; sow an act and you reap a habit; sow a habit and you reap a character; sow a character and you reap a destiny.
It is true for the farmer planting seeds in the field, and it is true for the suburbanite planting seeds in his family. Click To Tweet16. You will always be from the same place (Deuteronomy 8:10-20)
You will always be you. I know that is not profound, but it is something we can easily forget. We must not attempt to be something we are not. God created you as an original masterpiece, but so many of us attempt to be a carbon copy of someone else.
17. You will become what you surround yourself with (Proverbs 13:20)
A statement I often made when I served as a youth pastor was, “Show me your friends, and I will show you your future.” This is true for teenagers, and it is true for adults. Are the people closest to you bringing out the best in you?
18. You will make mistakes (I John 1:8)
Not a single one of us is perfect. There has only been one that was perfect, and that was Jesus. Every day I am going to make mistakes. Scripture goes as far as to say that if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. This does not give us an excuse to make mistakes. We should still strive for righteousness, but we must recognize that we will make mistakes.
We should still strive for righteousness, but we must recognize that we will make mistakes. Click To Tweet19. You need to be in church (Hebrews 10:25)
I have heard every excuse imaginable for not going to church. And yes, it is true, you will find hypocrites when you go. But that doesn’t change the fact that we were created to need community. We were not intended to live life alone. Just as I mentioned earlier, you will become what you surround yourself with, and you need a community of believers that will encourage you, teach you, hold you accountable, and at times correct you. You find this at church. That’s why Scripture says not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together.
20. You can’t get to heaven on your own (John 14:6)
There is only one way to get to heaven. Jesus said, “I am the way.” This will never change. It is not about how good or how bad of a person you are. It is because of the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary.
It is not about how good or how bad of a person you are. It is because of the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. Click To Tweet