Isaiah 43:18-19

New International Version

“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 wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland.

 For Encouragement

Are you stuck in the past, expecting nothing new in your life—discouraged and abandoned? Wake up to a new reality! God is doing new things.

The Lord talked vividly to Israel about a glorious future restoration. The imagery was refreshing and captivating. He told them to look back on their history and see the marvelous things He did to deliver them from Egypt, the extraordinary wonders He performed at the Red Sea, in the wilderness, until Canaan. No nation in the world equaled them.

Israel, however, never appreciated Him. They grumbled and complained about the manna God rained from heaven to feed them. Instead, they yearned for the food of Egypt, their land of slavery and bondage (Numbers 11:5-6). Yesterday never passed for them. Since they referred their past to their current situation, they never enjoyed freedom’s blessedness. Like an eagle that couldn’t fly, defeat and slavery defined their history. Shameful!

Unfortunately, that’s how some of us prefer to live—in the glories of the past.

The prophet Isaiah, however, came with a message of hope—a beautiful picture of a new thing God is doing. It is an uncommon thing beyond their wildest imagination. He tells them to forget the old things and not dwell on the past. The new project requires a renewed focus. A new way will open up in the desert, and streams will spring up in the wasteland (Isaiah 43:18-19). Good news to hold their imagination, but for how long, and with what influence on their lives?

God hasn’t changed, and indeed, nothing about Him has. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow (Hebrews 13:8). We draw strength from His dealings with Israel—His promises and their manifestations. His new things are springing up everywhere in our day—the reason we can expect refreshing springs and demonstrations of His mighty power in our ruined situations.

So, hear God through Isaiah’s prophesy to Israel: “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.” Open your eyes to see His surprises spring up around you to delight your heart while you position yourself to receive them. They spring up in your marriage, home, children’s life, job, health, and economy—in your neighborhood, nation, world, and the mission field—they are all around you, despite the gloomy situation. 

Watch out, though, because it is possible to look and still miss it (Matthew 13:13). No one puts new wine into old wineskin (Mark 2:22). New things require an attitudinal change to help us experience what God is doing in our life.

The question is: Are you ready for the God of new things?