I wanted to write a ‘Year in Review’ post last night but my heart was still reeling from the news of the Air Asia #QZ8501 tragedy. I grieve with those families who have suffered such painful personal losses – their loved ones snatched away from them in an instant, without any chance to say their last goodbyes. Just weeks ago, we’ve also stood with a couple who buried their baby girl due to SIDS. It breaks my heart to see my Grandma getting frailer and reduced to bones on our weekly visits, knowing time is not on our side…In our fallen world full of terrorist acts, natural disasters, bad news and heartaches, what’s there to give thanks for?

I took a step back and will myself to number the things I am thankful for in 2014.

1. This is the year where our daughter spent her last year as a kindergartener – happy, well-adjusted and very loved by all in the school. In 2 days’ time, she will be donning the uniform of the primary school of our choice. We are grateful.

2. The year where we celebrated our 15th Wedding Anniversary and saved up for a trip to the Big Apple.

3. The year where we adopted our baby son Alexander.  Our years of seeking a sibling for Dana finally come to fruition when God hand-picked AJ for our family. And what an affectionate boy he’s turning out to be.

Truth to be told, I am not looking forward to the start of the New Year. I am muted, my mood is melancholic….It feels as though my joy and strength have been zapped from the events that unfolded, both in the media and on the home front.  Until, I am reminded by this article that life is not perfect. We discover this truth early in life and the older we are, the more we see it to be true. In fact, imperfections assault us in nearly every direction:

• The world we live on is far from perfect. Famine, disasters, and calamity impact both the lives of those we know and the lives of those we’ve never met. Our world produces beauty, but it also produces great pain.
• The people around us are far from perfect. Greed and selfishness prevail in every society. Prejudice and misconception harm relationships. Hatred and contempt have resulted in terrible consequences from the very beginning of time.
• And unfortunately, we are far from perfect as well. We often get tripped up by temptation and greed. We war within ourselves to do what is right. And we know, deep-down, there are far too many unhealthy tendencies that motivate our actions and decisions.

So 2015 is not going to be perfect. But God is our hope and our refuge. This is the good news we need to hear. It means we can stop pursuing the perfect life – the perfect skin, the perfect body, the perfect job, the perfect house, the perfect spouse or the perfect kids. It means we can run to Him for strength and find freedom to live within our imperfections.  With the right perspective, we can find contentment and happiness even in the midst of defects. Life is not perfect, but it goes on. When we learn to fully embrace both its beauty and imperfections, we give ourselves the chance to live victorious in both.  May God be our shield, our sufficiency, our joy and our comfort in 2015.

The mountaintops are high because the valleys are low. Without sorrow, there is no joy. Imperfection brings beauty to the good. Because we know life is imperfect at best, we can find even greater joy in the little moments of triumph. ~ Joshua Becker

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 Here’s wishing all our readers a Blessed New Year.