What will this new year bring? Will I be able to cope? Am I equipped to make the necessary changes? Will I encounter towering obstacles? Will life throw me a curveball that could strike me out? Will I be able to make it if things go downhill?
Fleeting thoughts like these might cross your mind when facing a new year, as they do mine. I have learned to counter them with the promises in God’s Word that can turn gloom into brightness and despair into hope. I rely on God, put my trust in His Word, and choose to face the future with faith.
Last year presented a major hurdle for me, unlike anything I had experienced before. I suffered an aortic dissection which nearly took my life. I overcame this unexpected event through God’s healing grace and transcendent peace.
The doctors were amazed that I survived, especially because my symptoms were initially misdiagnosed, thus I wasn’t tended to right away. Later, I found out that many people with this disorder don’t even make it to the hospital in time. In my case, God miraculously kept me until I was finally on the operating table.
The prevalent feeling my wife and I had throughout the whole ordeal was not desperation or anxiety, but peace. This is the supernatural grace that only God can give. Even the doctors noticed the peace that surrounded me.
You’re probably familiar with the expression “peace in the midst of the storm” or the Old Testament maxim, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you” (Isaiah 26:3). Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27).
These are God’s promises for you regarding whatever circumstances you may encounter this year. There may be many challenges ahead, some that might even seem insurmountable. Do not be anxious. Put your full trust in the Lord, call upon Him from your heart, and the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your heart and your mind (Philippians 4:6–7).
May God’s peace and grace keep you throughout the coming year.