HOPE for the New Year
Selected Texts
Bold titles are song titles.
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, Even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, Though the mountains shake with its swelling.”
“Roll, Roll, Billows Roll
Thank you, men, for that testimony of confidence that God is our refuge and strength; we don’t need to fear. And thank you for tuning in to this New Year’s edition of The Voice of Hope. I’m J. Mark Horst, your host, and I’m delighted to have you join me.
Well, here we are, just about ready to turn the calendar page to the year 2024. Looking around at the conditions in our world could lead us to have a fearful, pessimistic view of the future. There are numerous wars going on around the world and crime and violence are on the rise in our country. But let’s not forget – God is in control.
The Psalmist asked, “Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying “Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.” He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure: “Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion.”
“Thine is the Kingdom”
Isn’t it comforting to know that the Almighty, Sovereign God is in control of events in our world? It is to me. But do you know something? He’s in control of the events of your life, too! Now maybe you have no problem believing that God controls the events in your world, but you do have a problem believing that God controls the events of your life.
In fact, you may not want Him to have that control. Instead, you want to have control, you want to make those choices yourself! You’re afraid that if you let God choose for you, He’ll ask you do something or serve Him in some way that you don’t want to.
But listen to what God has to say in Jeremiah 29:11. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. [That verse is familiar and is often quoted by itself. But listen to what follows]. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”If you trust God with the details of your life, if you seek Him with all your heart, then this will be your testimony.
“The Lord is My Strength and My Song”
Now, it’s true, trusting God with your life will not guarantee that things will always be easy or go the way you plan. But because God is the All-wise, All-knowing, loving Heavenly Father, He will not allow anything into your life that is not for your good and His glory. God doesn’t allow trouble and heartache just to make your life difficult. No, He always has a purpose He wants to accomplish. That purpose is to make you more like Jesus, and to demonstrate His power through you to those who are watching your life.
Are you willing to give God that kind of freedom in your life as we enter the New Year?
