A New Page

A new year invites us to look back, and Isaiah gives a surprising instruction: do not dwell on the former things, because God is about to do something new. This is not denial of the past. The same prophet often tells Israel to remember what God has done. The point is that yesterday's failures and even yesterday's victories are not the boundary of what God can do. He speaks of a path in the wilderness and streams in dry ground, images of life where none seemed possible. Hope in Scripture is not optimism about ourselves but confidence in Him. Today, take ten minutes and write two short lists: one thing you are releasing from last year, and one thing you are asking God to begin. Put the page somewhere you will see it. Then take one small step toward the second list before the day ends.