The next junction is 2020: Where do we go from here?

BY ERROL A. GIBBS

The year 2020 sounds like a prophetic year, but this writer hopes that the postmodern prophets would think long and hard before they advise us mere mortals about what would unfold in the future―civilizations quest since 1st century BCE. 1. The world has experienced many anxious moments anticipating the end of time, with the coming of significant catastrophic events, and a person of profound influence, who will bring peace and stability―globally, but only temporarily.

At the beginning of each year, some futurists and psychics foretell the future of coming world events. People consult with fortune-tellers for a personal reading of their fortune and future. Followers of Jesus Christ pontificate that His second coming is nearing, and have been doing so since CE 60-70 up to the present (2019). Christian leaders refer to each New Year as the year of jubilee, harvest, or increase to inspire their followers in a sort of “celebrated expectation” of principally material prosperity.

Some people wait futility for a sudden burst of material prosperity, or deity to suddenly appear and change the circumstances of their lives. Paradoxically, as life on the Earth becomes more inexplicable, and catastrophic events overwhelm human existence, people are inclined to deepen their search for someone or something that can come from somewhere to save humanity from itself.

Why is it so difficult for human beings to believe that it is our responsibility to demonstrate to the unseen God that we are worthy of benevolence, mercy, and cooperation. Have we ever considered that humans possess the capacity to make life-saving and life-transforming decisions that can alter the future of the world? You might ask, “What makes this writer so confident that humans can change the course of our lives and human history?

First, history does not merely happen―”we the people” make history. The future of the world is determinable from spiritual, intellectual, and observable perspectives. The current state of our planet is an enigma. Every humane or inhumane thought acted upon has profound consequences—negative or positive. It does matter whether the thoughts are evil such as―racism, slavery, apartheid, war, colonization, violence, or greed.

Consequently, when thoughts are healthy, they produce actions such as peacekeeping, charitable giving, loving, caring, sharing, forgiving others, and displaying empathy, the outcomes would be positive. More importantly, our thoughts are not random, they are malleable, but they have triggers that stimulate different responses to circumstances in life. For instance, when someone does wrong to us, our response could be anger and revenge, or peacefulness and forgiveness.

When a disaster such as a flood, an earthquake, or a tsunami overwhelms a nation, the first impulse is to come together in a massive display of cooperativeness. Does anyone say, “Let us wait for a Messiah to come and alleviate human suffering?” Neither should we have to wait for the prophets to tell us about the consequences of our actions. We know by spirit, intuition, and intelligence that we are the agents to bring about the change that is essential to eliminate, mitigate, or manage a disaster.

Undergirded by these “thought perspectives,” lie the irrefutable evidence that we have control of our destiny, enabled by our spiritual connection to God. Civilization brought itself out of the Dark Ages or Early Middle Ages, the early medieval period of western European history—specifically, the time (476–800 CE). The world ended 400 years of unrelenting Black African Slavery (1600–1900 CE), and the United Nations (UN) gave the Declaration of Human Rights to the world in (1984).

American astronauts Neil Armstrong (1930-2012) and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin (1930 – present) took civilization to the moon on July 20^th, 1969. The year 2020 could be the year that we rise beyond selfish motives and ask, “What do we want for humanity, which comprehends what we want for ourselves. We can forge a “New World Order,” leading with spirit, integrity, and authenticity―not the “Old World Order” that leaders have established to rule over humankind with impunity.

We can change the course of history for the better, but it is up to every person of every nation, and not left to the elites in religion, politics, and academia. The present and future challenges to humankind are not merely technical matters, but issues of life and death of humanity. People must make every effort to dispel ignorance, complacency, and fear of the ruling elites, though they have ruled like godlike figures throughout every age.

We cannot erase the memories of yesteryear. Notwithstanding, on January 1^st, 2020 (00:01 A.M.), a new epoch begins. We can embrace a new seriousness―to resist the urge for political apathy, religious and cultural disunity, racial hatred, self-hate, self-loathing, and family disunity. We could decide to be more grateful for the life that we have, though it may be challenging. We could choose to begin a more in-depth search for a new awakening―spiritual, moral, social, intellectual, and physical that would empower humanity, guided by “the healing hand” (Second Chronicles 7:14).