As the New Year approaches, what sort of terrain is under your feet? Are you traversing along paths of rose petals and gold-laced picket fences, or are your shoes trudging through puddles of mud as you climb up an unfamiliar slope with no assurance of reaching greener pastures? In other words, my friend, is life going well for you, or are you wandering about in the wilderness looking for a way out while searching for God’s involvement in your struggles when He might seem absent? We all have stretches of trekking about in the backwoods, but did you know that we are never alone, that the Lord is always with us?
Isaiah 43:10 says, “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.” (NIV)
Even during those situations in our lives when we are slogging through the wilderness, God is busy preparing us for something different—something even greater than we could see or imagine. We need to develop a mindset of trusting His timing and being ready to receive new blessings on the horizon according to His perfect plan for our lives, a plan that I realize isn’t always easy to see when our clothes are covered in thick, gooey slime. From experience, I want you to know that when the sunshine fades and the green grass turns brown and wilted under your feet, that God will always make a way through no-man’s land. It might take some time, but don’t lose hope.
“Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10 NKJV)
In my life right now, there are days when I’m on solid ground and other days when I feel like I am alone in the backcountry, lost and hungry, with no idea as to where I am going. I am also aware from past history that God is always with me through every trial, and He is with you too. The Lord Himself tells us in John 16:33, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (NIV). We cannot avoid trouble in our lives, but we can fully depend on the Lord to personally go ahead of us and clear a path when the time is right.
Whether or not you are currently wandering about in the wilderness—perhaps along a bumpy trail of fear or uncertainty, or maybe you are desperate for God to deliver you from the quicksand, might I offer you these words of encouragement, also from the book of Isaiah, 26:3, 4: “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.” (ESV)
In the midst of our struggles, remember that God is our constant companion. He whispers peace into our soul when we trust in him. He will always give us the strength to face another day and will always provide a way out of the wilderness when we fully place our trust in our Heavenly Father. The Lord is our strength and shield, an ever-present help in times of trouble as we put one foot in front of the other.
Let’s vow to keep our collective eyes on Jesus. Having said that, I’d like to wish you a Happy New Year with Jesus at your side. Keep Him close no matter the terrain you find yourself in. There is no better route to take.
Paul Smyth
