Top 10 Insights Posts From 2020

by Erik Jones
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Topics: Relationships, Prophecy, Social Issues

As we leave 2020 behind us and move on to a new calendar year, here’s a look back at our top Life, Hope & Truth Insights posts from 2020.

The year 2020.

“What a year!” is probably an understatement. We experienced a lot of things this year that none of us had ever experienced before. Hopefully, 2021 will be more uplifting—but we live in an increasingly tumultuous world, so we’ll just have to wait and see what it brings.

Before moving on to a new calendar year, it can be helpful to look back and take stock of where we’ve been. Here is a list (with excerpts) of our top Insights posts from 2020 based on unique page views.

It should be no surprise that many of the topics coincided with the unique challenges we faced this year.

1. 5 Things Christians Should Be Doing During the Coronavirus Pandemic

“It’s impossible to know a lot of things right now. How long until things get back to normal? We don’t know. How many people will catch the disease? We don’t know. How many of them will die? We don’t know. What impact will all this have on the world economy? We don’t know—but it doesn’t look good.

“Here’s what we do know:

“Day-to-day life may change in a million ways, but Christians don’t get to stop being Christians just because they live in stressful times. In fact, the very core of your Christian faith is reflected in who you are when times get stressful.”

2. What’s Behind the Coronavirus Outbreak?

“Hopefully, the current coronavirus will be brought under control and its spread will be stopped. But we still know from Bible prophecy that even more serious and deadly disease epidemics are ahead of us. The ‘pale horse’ is already riding—and will ride with more strength and speed during the coming Great Tribulation.

“The good news is that Jesus Christ will return to establish the Kingdom of God on earth. When that happens, God’s laws will be implemented throughout the world (Isaiah 2:2-4), which will result in a healthy world—both physically and spiritually!

“Jesus Christ, who will return on a white horse, will overpower and destroy the four horsemen of Revelation, including the ‘pale horse’ of pestilence.”

3. The Destructive Ride of the White Horse of Revelation

“It is spiritual deception that is at the root of most of humanity’s problems—including wars and the resulting famines and pestilences. Because false religion has so many varieties, it has driven wedges between people for thousands of years and has been a factor in nearly every human conflict.

“Though all false religions have one thing in common—rejection of God’s true laws—Satan has been able to use the subtle differences between them to inspire hatred and warfare.”

4. Coronavirus and Prophecy: Are We Heading Toward “Uncharted Territory”?

“Bible prophecy shows that the world is about to enter into what is truly ‘uncharted territory.’

“Jesus warned that as we approach the end of the age, we will witness a period of ‘great tribulation’ (Matthew 24:21). Jesus described it as unlike any other time the world has experienced—and, thankfully, it will only occur once and never again . . .

“But prior to this great tribulation, Jesus prophesied another period of time He labeled ‘the beginning of sorrows’ (Matthew 24:8). He gave four signs of what this time would be like.”

5. Communication Styles: Passive Communication

“Passive communication is the opposite of being assertive. It is when we hide our opinion and feelings and let others ‘walk all over us.’ It is a form of communication that avoids and prolongs issues, instead of dealing with them head-on.

“Passive communication may sound harmless, but when we really understand its dynamics, we learn it truly is harmful. When our style of communication is passive, we are most often seen as pushovers, or powerless, or uninterested.”

6. Did God Create the Coronavirus?

“The perfect, ingenious Designer has built into His creation the dynamic—or law—of cause and effect, which is predicated upon His eternal, living laws. In ways far above our understanding, the bottom line is that when God’s laws are obeyed, the creation is in harmonious balance and provides health, happiness and every good thing. When God’s laws are defied, the intricate balance of those wondrous systems breaks down, and every unpleasant consequence results.

“Did God create the virus that causes COVID-19? Yes and no. Yes, God originally created viruses as part of His astoundingly intricate—and good—creation. But the novel coronavirus—and its rapid global spread—came about as a result of the capacity for viruses to become modified, along with a world cursed by the consequences of sin and led by its ruler, Satan the devil.”

7. Now Is the Time to Protest—but How?

“Jesus Christ is returning to overthrow this entire system. He will replace it with an entirely new system, the Kingdom of God (Revelation 19:16). The Kingdom of God under Jesus’ rule will be established ‘with judgment and justice’ (Isaiah 9:7) . . .

“You can protest the present system by refusing to be sucked into its destructive ways. You can protest Satan by fighting his influence over your mind. You can protest racism by making a conscious effort to view and treat all people with the honor and respect due to all human beings made in the image of God. You can protest injustice by practicing justice in your life. You can protest violence by living the principles of peace.”

8. Things I’ve Learned From Testing Positive for COVID-19

“The onslaught of information from the media and Internet over the last four months can lead us into a very negative mind-set. It becomes easy to dwell on the worst possible outcomes.

“But we must have the faith to know God is in control of the situation and trust His will to be done. That will give us confidence that He knows all things and will never leave us or forsake us. We can’t allow ourselves to settle into a destructive and negative mentality. It is good to remember that things could always be a lot worse—and they will get better.”

9. Loving Your Neighbor in the Age of Coronavirus

“While the World Health Organization has put the overall mortality rate for those contracting the disease at 3.4 percent globally, in my demographic, the fatality rate is around 8 percent. That means for every dozen 70-something people who contract this easily transmissible disease, one will die. (A recent report says the fatality rate is 3.6 percent for those between the ages of 60-69, but 14.8 percent for those over 80.)

“When I consider that figure, I honestly don’t see numbers. I see faces. I hear names. I could easily list several dozen people who are my friends and family who are in that demographic—my wife, my in-laws, many of the friends I have had since the days when we were young and healthy together.”

10. What Is Juneteenth All About?

“In our personal lives, we shouldn’t be satisfied with improvements, but should strive for God’s perfect standard. Racial discrimination is a sin. It does not reflect the perfect character and standards of God. And, like other sins, it can be hidden and camouflaged even behind real or alleged progress.

“Juneteenth should remind us of the importance of going past improvements and striving toward godly perfection.”

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Date Posted: December 29, 2020