New

“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Isaiah 43:18-19 (ESV)

There's no point living in the past. We shouldn't allow ourselves to be defined by past sins. God can make our desert souls come alive with the water of life, the outpouring of His Holy Spirit.

The Lord Jesus gifts us with His Holy Spirit, who pours from us to bless others too. Like a wilderness that becomes a meadow, we can bless others. Whatever the past as held, the future can be bright if we trust in the God who holds the future.

We might not know the future. Yet we can know the One who holds the future. We don't need to fear what this year might hold, because God will look after us if we belong to Him.

Isaiah was writing to a nation that would be taken captive by the Babylonian Empire. Yet even that catastrophic event wasn't the end of the story for God's people. He restored them back to their land, and has done it again in recent history.

'God of Israel, may You graft Gentiles like us into Your people. May we trust in You for salvation, in Jesus' name, amen'

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