Access

ac  .  cess/noun/ entrance, entry

Usually, my word for the week is not well known and is multisyllabic, but this week I  have chosen a common one. The word access has multiple meanings, two of which are listed above. However, some of the meanings are not one-word  synonyms  like “entrance” and “entry.”  For example, we have heard quite a lot of talk recently about “buying access” in government circles, something  with unsavory overtones, but not many people seem to be bothered by it since that sort of thing has been going on  forever.  There is also “free  access” to a building as is stipulated for handicapped individuals; or another meaning,  “access to health care,”  a  much-debated topic under the Affordable Care Act. Looking forward to the year ahead, I have put a different slant  on  the word access,  keeping its meaning of  “entrance”  and “entry.”  But what  I have in mind is gaining access into the brand new year 2019.

Minnie Louise Haskins has left an enduring image in a poem that often surfaces at the beginning  of a new year. Her poem has the oft-repeated lines: “And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year/ ‘Give me a light that I might tread safely into the unknown.’ ” Here, the poet presents a striking image of a man standing guard at the entrance to an intimidating new year, and the speaker asks for help to make her secure entry into the unknown. The lines of the poem were used in a speech by King George VI of England in 1939 in what is considered the first Royal Christmas Message ever broadcast. Those were welcome words at a time of  great world uncertainty.

For us rounding out 2018,  uncertainty looms ahead, and we are quite  open to having  something to give us access into the new year. Minnie Haskins’ request to the man at the gate of the year could be likened to asking for a “password” or a “passcode” to get past the gate-keeper and gain access to the  coming year, whose door must inevitably be opened. Passwords are  ubiquitous in our technological age, but they are not new. They were used in ancient times to gain permission to pass through or even approach a particular area that was  often fraught with danger.  The individual had to give the password, also called a”watchword,” to the sentry or guard on duty.   So something that is ancient has now become  familiar.  Many of us have several passwords–for our bank, our e-mail accounts and more. It is highly recommended that passwords be strong.  For access to the new year, I recommend an unquestionably strong password: Believe. It is a word that speaks of certainty and stability in the face of unsettling events looming on the horizon. This is not mere assent, but intentional belief. Believe should get us entry from the man at the gate of the year.

Believe covers three areas.  First, we must believe in ourselves as individuals endowed with  inner strength, resilience, and self-control, all of which is  personal capital that will make us emotionally and spiritually fit to take on the new year. We must adopt the “Yes I can” attitude engendered by the Apostle Paul in his declaration: “I can do all things through Christ.”

Then, too,  we must extend our efforts to believe in others. Of course, this rules out being naïve. “Be wise as a serpent,” the Bible tells us.  Nevertheless, we mustn’t be unnecessarily suspicious of others either, but be always  willing to accept them as worthy of a place at the same table with us.  We can’t allow ourselves to see them as “other” and treat them with disdain based on their station in life or their origin. They are as good and as valuable as we are, so we should look at them through the eyes of equality and acceptance.

The third part of our Believe password recognizes that our foundation for believing rests in God who made all things, controls all things, and knows all things. He will be the Source of our empowerment and strength in the rocky times in the year ahead.

Armed with our strong password, Believe,  we can now say it with confidence to the man at the gate of the year, and he will wave us  through, giving us clear  access to 2019, and to that omnipotent Light that “lightens everyone that comes  into the  world.”   He will shine His  light on our path and will  lovingly,  and, whenever necessary,  supernaturally shape  events for our good throughout the coming year. We can count on it.

Blessings,

Judith

*****

“For last year’s words belong to last year’s language
And next year’s words await another voice.
And to make an end is to make a beginning.”
(from Little Giddings)  T.S. Eliot