New— blank slate, fresh experience, anticipated opportunity, unblemished gift, bright promise, awaited discovery.
I got lost inside my head trying to understand why the coming of a new year causes such a high sense of anticipation. Nothing is certain and anything can change in a moment. With relief we close the chapter on the previous year’s pain, sorrows, and regrets and hope for better days ahead, but we have no guarantees. So why does a new year expand our hearts?
As I wandered these paths of thought, seeking understanding while becoming a bit cynical, I considered how newness is celebrated in the Bible. God doesn’t ignore the threat of disappointment or the regrets of the past, but He does rejoice in the new. Look at what I mean:
- God makes us new. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Cor. 5:17,ESV). He delights in taking damaged souls and making them new with new life and new purpose.
- God’s mercy is new every day. In every challenge and hardship the new year will bring, God is present. “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lam. 3:22-23). I will not face one day in 2024 alone.
- God assures us the best is yet to come. “But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize” (Phil. 3:13-14). Looking ahead is not escapism, it’s solid hope.
- God equips us during our wait on earth. “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isa. 30:41). Disappointments will not diminish me, but grow me.
God celebrates newness. He is all about new birth, new lives, new beginnings, new strength, new opportunities.
What new thing will He do in you and through you in 2024?
BARBARA HIGBY 