“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 43:19; “And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.’” Revelation 21:5; “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23; “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” Romans 6:4
As January 1st ushers in a brand-new year, filled with personal ambitions, new aspirations, hopes and dreams, the challenges of last year are set aside or dimed. You may have written down your “New Year’s resolutions, believing that this year would be better than the last. God’s Word encourages us to “write the vision and make it plain…” (Habakkuk 2:2). But, there’s something much better than New Year’s resolutions, and that’s the Word of God. Let your most important “resolution” this year be to spend quality time, meditating the Scriptures. (See Joshua 1:8.) God’s promise to do a new thing in each of our lives will come to pass as we believe and confess His Word in faith. Don’t fear or be discouraged that it looks impossible—with God all things are possible to him who believes. As God spoke to Israel, He is now speaking same to us. He is the God who puts a road in the wilderness, who makes a way where there seems to be no way. Do you feel you lack in some area—resources, time, strength, ability—that you don’t have what it takes? That is a lie of the devil. Your God is the God who creates rivers in the desert and supplies all that you need to enter into His good plans for you. (See Jeremiah 29:11.)
Adam Borneman on Maybe God’s New Thing is not what you think it is writes, “As we enter a new year with all our resolutions, goals, and commitments, know that God is indeed renewing and restoring all things. Know that despite our failed resolutions, falling short on goals and commitments, that God, on a grander scale, is always “doing a new thing” that will ultimately be for our good. This doesn’t mean that all the particular expressions of what God is up to will be what we expected or wanted. Conversely, let us not assume that the new thing we are so thrilled about has a one-to-one correlation with God’s will, for we still see only in a mirror dimly! In any case, I believe that in the end all the good, bad, and ugly will be decisively transformed and redeemed in ways more beautiful than we could have never imagined, for the “new thing” that God is doing is always in concert with God making “all things new.”
The new thing God is doing is bringing blessings and a new path ahead for His people where the world said there is no way forward. What is, truly, God’s relationship with NEW? We are bombarded right now in the church with all sorts of voices telling us that we have to come up with something shiny and new because the old isn’t working: “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?” (Isaiah 43:19, NIV). In What Exactly Is This “New Thing” That God Says He Is Doing? Blair Parke writes, “If there is one thing you can count on with God, it is that can never predict when He will change the course of your life and lead you down a path of blessings you couldn’t imagine. The Bible gives countless examples of the amazing changes God made in people’s lives centuries before, and what He continues to do in our lives today. The prophet Isaiah proclaimed in Isaiah 43:19 that “God would do a new thing” in our lives, something we couldn’t do ourselves. This thing would be impossible for man, but possible to God. What could this new thing be in our lives, individually and collectively, as His children? The book of Isaiah reminds us that you can believe that all God does is for our growth as believers of His will.
Prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 43:19 shares what he received from the Lord, of what He would bring to His people. The verse says, “Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” The verse states, God was planning on doing something new for the people of Israel – something that would not be expected. He listed examples such as a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, both scenarios that would seem impossible to people at that time. What God wanted Israel – and us – to realize is that He is the one responsible for bringing this new thing forward, springing it forth where you can’t miss it, unless you don’t understand it is His doing and no one else’s. The new thing God is doing is bringing blessings and a new path ahead for His people where the world said there is no way forward. The verse says God would make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert also connect to Isaiah 43:16-17.
This passage is about making a way in the sea and a path through the mighty waters, bringing down army, power, chariots, and horses. The truth still stands for us today that God is doing a new thing in our lives, creating a way in the wilderness of this world and springing forth a new thing, if we only recognize it. Especially today, finding hope and encouragement for the future can come in short supply in a world that continues to be riddled by corruption, disaster, and division. Funnily enough, that isn’t too far off how the people of Israel were during this time of Isaiah’s prophesy. Blair Parke further says, “In the struggles in our world today, it can be hard to think of new things happening that will bring blessings and valuable life lessons into our lives. Our world seems to be comfortable in the doom and gloom, with the belief that we should trust ourselves more than a God we can’t see or touch.
However, Isaiah 43:19 demonstrates that we should never count God out in bringing beauty out of brokenness or miraculous paths through wildernesses seasons and deserts in life. God knows the path ahead and knows when the right time is to bring forth that needed blessing, that new thing, to change the entire trajectory of our lives as it brings glory to Him. The new thing is on the horizon, the path in the wilderness and the river in the desert. Trust God has it in store for us, blessings for this temporary world before we reach the eternal blessing of heaven with Him.
FAITH & INSPIRATION opens with, “Our God is a God of new beginnings and likes doing new things; it is all over creation! He designed our bodies always to produce new cells, new hair; we are always experiencing new days, years, and seasons. We have a new life in Christ, with new opportunities and new challenges. And one of His last promises in the Bible is Him making all things new. (Revelation 21:5). As God created us in His image, we have a liking for new things as well. We are always producing and buying new stuff and seeking new experiences and sensations. The funny thing, though, is that whenever God begins doing new things in our lives, we firmly resist it. That’s the one occasion when we rather stick to the old. I admit being guilty of that because, like most, I don’t like change and surprises. I may have envisioned my life a certain way and resist anything that threatens to put it on a different path. So when God does a new thing in my life, my first reaction is to oppose it and cling on to my old familiar ways. For those who like change – “new” is mostly exciting. For those who don’t like change – “new” is mostly stressful. That sounds familiar to you too.
Sometimes when God closed a door and refused to open it despite our many prayers. Instead of accepting it and going down the hallway into the unknown to seek for a new door He might have opened, we camped at that old door and resolutely kept banging on it However, I have learned that it is vital to embrace the new things God is doing; to let go of past opportunities, and prepare for the new things ahead. When God is doing something new, it sometimes requires us to step into the unknown, which may feel uncomfortable, scary, and even unpleasant at first. We might be tempted to hold on to the life we know where everything is familiar. But we need to let go of the old, trust God and embrace what He is doing. Otherwise, we will miss out on all the good things God wants to do to us and through us.
God is always doing a new thing in our lives but we may not always see it or feel it. Sometimes it seems like we have stayed in one season for a long time. I have been there severally. And we all wonder when it will change or looking for a breakthrough. We can get encouragement from Isaiah 43:19 which shows us that God is at work in our lives doing new things. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. – Isaiah 43:19 The above Scripture shows us that God gives us signs that He is doing a new thing in our lives. “even when we do not perceive it?”
We need to learn to discern the signs and prepare ourselves accordingly. He does this so that we can know that He is about to bless us in a big way. If you sense that God wants to do something in your life, pray about it and ask Him for a revelation. He is faithful to show you. Now, truth be told we don’t always see what God is doing in our lives. I remember feeling frustrated and confused countless times because I didn’t understand the season God had me in. I didn’t want it to be mine, but in the past, I behaved like the Israelites. But I am learning to trust God and to follow Him even if it is in the unknown beyond my comfort zone. I am trying to let go of my plans and step into His because God’s plans are exceedingly and abundantly better than anything anyone can ever imagine. If you feel God doing a new thing, don’t resist it like the children of Israel, but embrace it! Let go of the former things, and endure the testing and preparation that will inevitably follow. If we trust Him, He will lead us to higher places and accomplish beautiful and marvelous things through us. “Behold, I am making all things new” (Rev. 21:5). Our Lord comforts us in our fear, brings hope to the hopeless, brings new life and purpose out of nothingness, and longs to transform your heart if you give him permission to. Be brave, and see how God can make all things new in your life.
We shall conclude with Jack Hayford on Preparing For A New “God-Thing, “There is something so sweet and tender, yet so mighty, about God telling us He wants to do a “new thing.” I believe the Lord is wanting us to hear Him at a personal level:Be reminded of the kinds of things I can do and My exhaustless resource of wisdom and power. Don’t confine Me to what I’ve already done or try to anticipate what I will do next. Though you may be captive, exiled, or guilty, My “new thing” is still for you. I am your complete Deliverer, making a way for you where there is no way. I come in My holiness to make you whole. My “new thing” will prepare you for whatever is to come, and out of it, you will find new themes for your praise unto Me. How can we open to God’s “new thing”? Walk in simple obedience. Keep on loving Jesus, praising the Lord every day. Feed on His Word. Manage your money God’s way. Make a mental commitment to do the right thing, and then say, “Lord, work it in me.” God’s called you to His terms, not that He might manipulate you, but that He might bless you; because all of His ways are righteousness and peace. The Lord is calling us to open to “a new God-thing” because it’s sprouting—even now! He wants each of us to embrace it in our humanness, our personal life, our family, and our relationships. He’s declared He will do it in His eternal Word, and He’s whispering it today by His powerful Holy Spirit. As He does, our response becomes pivotal. God may be doing a new thing, but it can blow right by us—not because He’s indifferent about our experiencing, knowing, and being transformed by it, but because it calls for our participation, and He will never force that on anyone. Join me in drawing nearer to the heart of God and inviting Him to do a new thing in you today. Don’t try to make it happen, but stand in expectancy. Because God’s doing a new thing in the Earth, and it’s coming your way.
“When you start to think that things should have been better this year, remember the mountains and valleys that got you here. They are not accidents and those moments weren’t in vain. You are not the same, you have grown, and you are growing. You are breathing; you are living, and You are wrapped in endless, boundless grace. And things will get better. There is more to you than yesterday.” – Morgan Harper Nichols; “The reason why many are still troubled, still seeking, still making little forward progress is because they haven’t yet come to the end of themselves. We’re still trying to give orders, and interfering with God’s work within us. ― ; “God’s plan is not to abandon this world, the world which he said was “very good.” Rather, he intends to remake it. And when he does he will raise all his people to new bodily life to live in it. That is the promise of the Christian gospel.”― Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense