"See I am doing a new thing."

“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 streams in the wasteland…
To give drink to My people, My chosen,
the people I formed for Myself
that they may proclaim My praise.”
Isaiah 43:18-21

This Bible verse caught my eye for a couple reasons:

1. Especially at New Year, I get excited for new beginnings and the thought of leaving the past in the past.
2. At Peace there always seem s to be a sense of change in the air, not change regarding our Unchangeable God, but new spins on presenting the eternal Word and engaging believers in living out our faith.

“New” often means challenging and risky. I am a traditional girl myself and change is hard and sometimes uncomfortable for me. But if a new change will reach those not being reached by the church today, if it means my children’s peers and my grandchildren’s friends will know Jesus, then I welcome change for their sakes. I already know my Savior… they don’t. Might a new change be God’s way of “making streams in the wasteland to give drink to His people”?

Whether we are a person who embraces new things as exciting opportunities, or a person who dreads even more change and what it will mean in our life, (I’m a little of both), we all can agree that God leads or allows new situations in life. “See I am doing a new thing.” Sometimes it brings fear and discomfort. Sometimes it brings hope and confidence. But each new path has been lovingly and carefully chosen for us to take by a God who knows our today and our tomorrow. Can we walk with trust the new path He bought us to? I hope so.

Polly Wegner
Dir. of Discipleship