The Plan For a New Year

As I sit in my office thinking about what lies ahead in 2024 I can’t help but think about what it must have been like for the children of Israel as they stood at the entrance of the land that God had promised to Abraham. The excitement, the challenges, a little fear, ok a lot of fear. The struggles would be real, the path would take them to unfamiliar places and as much as they might have wanted to take on this new challenge, it would require change. You know, the thing that requires a leaving of one thing for another.

I like the beginning of a new year because it’s a way for me to start over. I know it’s just another day, but it signals the end of one thing and the beginning of something different, something new. Just like the children of Israel needed some coaxing, maybe you do too. Maybe 2023 brought not so good experiences for you and your family, maybe you just couldn’t wait for it to be over because the struggles of life seemed more than you could bare.

You see, I know that just like the children of Israel entering into the promised land was a struggle, challenging their faith in God; your challenge might be to trust God with your plans for the new year. Jesus came to seek and to save that which was lost. Maybe that is you. As we just celebrated Jesus’ birth at Christmas, we can’t forget His reason for coming. That reason was to die! Not just die like everyone dies, but to die on purpose. The purpose was the redemption of mankind. Jesus came to seek and save the broken, rejected, the sinner who had lost hope.  His salvation comes through faith in what was accomplished by His death and resurrection. The God/Man Jesus gave us something new. Hope for an eternal future with Him in heaven.

So, if you’re wondering what the new year might bring, have hope in the One who holds your future. He wants to make you NEW! Take heart, thank Him for giving you hope for a new year. The possibilities are endless.  God Bless!