A lot can change in 24 hours. You could finally get that new job, go out on that first date, or make amends with a person you have wronged. Reversely, you could lose your job, end that relationship, or get into a confrontation with somebody you know. No matter what happens, one thing always remains true: life goes on.
The LORD tells the Israelites in Isaiah 43:18-19 to “(18) Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. (19) 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.” No matter if you are in a beautiful, unfamiliar wilderness or a desolate wasteland, let the past be the past and trust God with what he is doing in your life!
24 hours ago, I was eating pasta with my family around the kitchen table, listening to the wind howl outside in a dark, cold winter night. Now, I am resting in my room with a family I have never met in Melbourne, Australia after a long day traveling in the Aussie heat. God is Good!
Don’t Worry, Doubt is Natural
Truthfully, I had a lot of doubts about this journey. Doubt is an odd thing as well, yet we all struggle with it. We constantly doubt our abilities, our looks, our pasts, and basically everything else. It’s natural because we are human.
Am I prepared for this new job? Did I say something wrong? Questions like this circle around in our heads as we relive our past and let doubt run our mind.
Trusting Jesus, however, takes away that doubt! Or at least it should as he is the God of the mountains and the valleys, all powerful and all knowing. And even with all of that, he loves his children more than we could imagine. How then could we doubt what our life will hold knowing that we have Jesus by our side.
Turning Doubt into Trust
Whatever has happened in your past, whether good or bad, forget it! Do not dwell on things that are not the present, as the longer you live in the past, the shorter your future gets. God is always working, focus on that, and know the this in this new hour, day, or chapter of your life that Jesus is with you, he loves you, and he will be with you the wilderness or wasteland.
Doubt is often what happens when trust hasn’t caught up yet. Next time you doubt anything remember this, pray, and put your trust in Jesus. You may be 3 miles from home or 3,000, like myself, but Jesus is always by your side. He never doubts his plan for you, so why should you!
Reflection Questions
- What did I take for granted before arriving here that I now see differently?
- Where did I feel uncomfortable today, and what might God be teaching me through that?
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