The God of New Beginnings

By: Edward Cortez

 

We have arrived in the year 2024 by the grace of God! The year 2023 is now history. Before us is a set of fresh opportunities to excel in our fields, enlarge our vision, and elevate our game. Someone probably told you that you might not make it through the year 2023, but if you’re reading this article, you made it through and you are now in a brand-new year, the year 2024!

You probably felt so alone, rejected, abandoned, and uncertain whether you were going to make it through last year, but praise be to God, He enabled you to overcome and brought you to the new year!

The encouragement for us this year 2024 is, “Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:18,19).

These words were given by God through the prophet Isaiah to the Jews who were refugees and captives in a foreign land called Babylon. They were despondent, exhausted, and hopeless not knowing whether they would still go back to their homeland to rebuild their city and the holy temple.

They forgot the truth that God was the God of new beginnings. He orchestrates new seasons and beginnings in our lives. He restores hope and instills a sense of joy and expectation for the future. He transforms defeats into victories and turns our miseries into magnificent opportunities.

After the Babylonians were defeated by the Persians, a new ruler by the name of King Cyrus, issued a decree allowing the Jews to return home to rebuild their city. A new dawn had arrived. Sadness was turned into joy. Hope sprung eternal.

Perhaps we had it rough last year wondering whether 2024 was any better. Business was down. Breakdowns in family relationships. Marriage was on the rocks. Unexpected financial downturns. A health scare. A dear loved one passed on.

God is saying to us today, the challenges of 2023 were meant to strengthen, stiffen, and make us steadfast. Do not dwell on the failures and even successes of the past. God is going to do something new and remarkable in our lives as we put our trust in him. He is the God of new beginnings. He will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The best is yet to come.

The song by Chris McClarney, “Beauty for Ashes,” encapsulates the transforming power of God: “God of the new beginnings. God of the second chance. Your grace an endless river. Your love an avalanche. There in my darkest moment. All hope burnt to the ground. That’s where Your mercy found me. That’s when Your love came down. You turned my mourning into dancing. You turned my sorrow into praise. You give me beauty for ashes…”

It all starts by knowing the God of new beginnings through a personal relationship and trust in His Son, Jesus. He came to die for our sins so that we may obtain new life and a new beginning.