Shine in the Darkness - Part 1ናሙና

New

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.  See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the desert and stream in the wasteland.  Isaiah 43:18-19

As it became more and more apparent that the coronavirus was going to massively disrupt life as we knew it, this passage immediately came to mind. Honestly, I wasn’t completely sure of how I felt about it. "New" implies change, and change doesn’t always seem like a desirable thing.

There have been times in my life when God used these verses to encourage me of better days, after a prolonged season of trials and difficulties.

This time, “new” wasn’t all that appealing, especially given what was taking place. I was looking at 2020 as a time of reestablishing forward momentum, both in my work and personally, a time of getting back to “normal.”

Still, even in these early stages, when it seems like we’re in the path of a destructive tsunami, God provides hope.

That hope comes from remembering:

1. God is doing this new thing. “See, I am doing a new thing!” 

Coronavirus is not in charge and doesn’t get to dictate the ultimate outcome

2. God is providing new opportunities out of this. “I am making a way in the desert…”

Who knows what other possibilities will arise, not despite the circumstances, but because of them? Hint: God does!

3. God is bringing new refreshment! “I am making…streams in the wasteland.” 

Jesus used the imagery of streams of water to talk about the work of the Holy Spirit. In these words is the promise of the Spirit producing abundant fruit in previously barren soil.

Could it be that one day we will look back, not to dwell on the past, but in awe and wonder at how God used a pandemic that wrought so much devastation to bring about a redemptive new thing all for his glory!

Author: Randy Weece, Relationship Officer - Global Leadership Network