January 1: I Am Doing A New Thing
Scripture
I am the Lord, who opened a way through the waters, making a dry path through the sea.
“But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.
19 For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?
I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.
-Isaiah 43:16, 18-19
Isaiah speaks a strong and timely word to God’s people. The Lord reminds them that He is the One who made a way through the sea, who carved a path through impossible waters. Yet even as He calls them to remember who He is and what He has done, He also urges them not to dwell on the past. God is not dismissing their history, He is inviting them to trust Him with their future. The same God who delivered them before is still at work.
We can all relate to this struggle. It is easy to live looking backward, replaying past failures, regrets, losses, or even past victories. God knows how easily the past can keep us stuck. So He calls His people to lift their eyes and perceive what He is doing now. “See, I am doing a new thing.” God is not finished. He is active, creative, and purposeful, even when the path ahead looks like wilderness.
We have the advantage of seeing God’s greater plan unfold through history. We know that this promise ultimately finds its fulfillment in Jesus, who ushered in the new covenant and made a new way for us to be reconciled to God. Because of Him, we now relate to God differently, forgiven, cleansed, and made new. Yet the heart of God has not changed. He is the same faithful, trustworthy God today that He has always been, and by His Spirit He continues to lead His people forward.
Because of that, we are not meant to dwell on what is behind us. We are invited to live fully in the present and move confidently into the future. God is still making a way, still bringing streams into dry places, still doing something new. And as John reminds us (Revelation 21), God is in the process of making all things new. Our calling is to trust Him, to step forward in faith, and to live for Him now, confident that the God who delivered us is still at work.
As we step into a new year, may we loosen our grip on what lies behind and learn to trust the Lord who walks with us, faithfully calling us forward in faith each day.
Reflection
1. What parts of your past do you find yourself dwelling on most often, and how might God be inviting you to release those into His care?
2. Where in your life does the future feel uncertain or wilderness-like, and what would it look like to trust that God is making a way there?
3. How does remembering God’s faithfulness in the past help you move forward with hope and confidence today?
Prayer
Thank God for His faithfulness and for the ways He has already made a way in your life. Ask Him to help you let go of what keeps you anchored to the past and to open your eyes to the new work He is doing now. Pray for trust and courage to move forward with Him, confident that He is still leading, still restoring, and still making all things new.