Berean Blog

2020- A Crazy Year Like Never Before?

by Tony Manning on August 03, 2020

The year was 1972, and humanity was shocked and shaken by events around the world.

  • The last major epidemic of smallpox erupted in Yugoslavia.
  • Thousands of protestors in cities all across America took to the streets to protest the Vietnam War.
  • The Senate passed the Equal Rights Amendment in the spring, declaring equal rights for men and women.
  • During the summer Olympics in Munich, Mark Spitz won seven gold medals. And those same Olympic Games shed more light on racism and hatred when Palestinian terrorists murdered eleven Jewish athletes.
  • The political scandal of Watergate began, and unemployment in England reached a post-depression all-time high of one million people.
  • NASA announced the space shuttle program to keep the United States ahead in the space race.

Perhaps the most significant event happened on Thursday, March 30, when a healthy baby boy was born in St. Louis, Missouri! Way to go, Mom!

History Repeats Itself

If you read through the previous paragraph again, you will notice that these significant events that happened forty-eight years ago (am I really that old?) are similar to what we have experienced this calendar year. We have pandemics, protests, acts of violence that reveal racism and hate, political scandal, Space Force, and skyrocketing unemployment around the world because of COVID-19. And yes, babies are still being born and families are growing.

The Basics Don't Change

History has a way of repeating itself. Dates change. Cities change. People change. Policies change. Wants change. But the basic need of people in 1972 and in 2020 hasn’t changed. In fact, the message of hope that brought comfort and peace to people around the world then is the same message that we have to share now. The methods may have changed, the programs have changed, the personalities have changed, but the message of the church hasn’t changed, can’t change, and won’t change.

Why? Because God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Peace in the Chaos

Berean looks different in the midst of COVID-19. Our communities look different. How our kids are being educated is different. How we go to work is different. With all the change that is happening around us, people are looking for something that is constant and brings continuity. The church can be – and needs to be – the conduit that bridges the gap between the chaos around us and the peace of Christ within us.

What You Can Do to Connect

As we prepare for Phase 2 at Berean, how can you reconnect with our faith family community to be encouraged, equipped, and empowered? Now, more than ever in the life of our church, we are being called upon by our neighborhoods and communities to bring comfort, peace, and continuity to a confusing and chaotic world. Do you have a small group to do life with? Do you serve on a weekend team? Do you share life in a ministry that disciples our children, students, or adults? Have you prayerfully considered joining a short-term mission team that makes Jesus known around the world? Have you financially partnered with Berean as we invest in the kingdom of God in the south metro and beyond?

Being connected in the life and ministry of our church is the best way to bring comfort, peace, and continuity to a crazy year like 2020.


Listen to Pastor Tony teach more about how Christ is the answer to what we want and what we need.

I Know I Can:

Tags: love, fear, hatred, violence, minneapolis, protests, lakeville, berean baptist church, tony manning, burnsville, covid-19, racial unrest, unprecidented times, history repeats iteself

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