Here we are at the beginning of a new year – one that in both the Hebrew and Roman calendar speaks numerically (the number 8) of “new beginnings”. New beginnings can be exciting and rich with fresh and hopeful expectations of good coming our way or they can be laden with fear of the unknown that may lay ahead. In any case, Father is calling us to trust Him as we cross the threshold of a new beginning, moving past the familiar to step into something new.
To trust anyone is a very personal matter. It requires having confidence in their ability to follow through with what they tell us. The Hebrew understanding of trust in God goes even deeper being rooted in a covenant bond with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who never lies and who promises to never leave or forsake us. He promises to us His Presence with full provision for all we need.
The Hebrew word for trust (“batach”) means to be secure and confident, to feel safe. It carries the concept of going into an inner room of a covenant household. Nothing can harm you there because you are safely surrounded in a home pledged to provide and care for you as a cherished family member. God has pledged to care for you as His beloved child.
Trusting God isn’t always easy in a world where we aren’t always cherished and often lied to. But God is not a man who lies and He cherishes us…He values you and me. Deeply.
3 Keys to Trusting God This New Year
- Don’t depend on your own (limited) insight. Ask Father to give you His perspective in the matters that concern you. Proverbs 3:5-6 says to trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your steps. Wait on Him to give you a fresh word for your journey.
- Ask Holy Spirit for new strategies for doing new things or for doing current things in new ways. He might even have you dust off something that’s been sitting on a shelf and refurbish it with new purpose. He is the spirit of wisdom and revelation and He has fresh insight and strategy that you need for this new year.
- Make time to be in God’s Word. This is one of the best places for shifting our thoughts into a higher realm of vision and understanding. I have discovered it to be a special place of encounter with God to hear His heart and grasp His guidance. His Word is light and light heals both heart and mind, liberating us from dark places in our soul, so that we can freely move forward in the beautiful way Father intends.
As we step into this new year that Father’s own calendar calls “a new beginning,” I personally am taking time to reset, refocus, and lean into His thoughts for new insights. I have great expectation that it will be a year rich with encounters with God as heaven breaks through on earth with increased activity this year. I pray that we go together with confidence into the inner room of greater intimacy with God for fresh insight into the matters of life that concern us and His beautiful purposes with us. I believe that as we commit our ways to Him, He will work all things together for good even when we don’t understand. It’s His promise and He never lies.
I am my Father’s daughter
