At the end of each year, news media outlets and sources are filled with stories and articles which review the events that occurred during the year: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Christians may also take year-end spiritual inventories of our lives. These reviews cause us to face the sobering truth that we were not always at our best and occasionally failed miserably. Although good for the soul and valuable for the insight gained, these reviews may leave us with a bit of shame and guilt related to the past year.

In Isaiah 65:17, God says: “Look! I’m creating a new heaven and a new earth: past events won’t be remembered; they won’t come to mind.” When meditating on that verse, I am reminded that past failures and disappointments fade into oblivion in the face of our future in God. God creates new possibilities and opportunities in our lives. We can learn from the previous year and leave it behind as we move forward into the light of a new year with hope, confidence, and assurance that God is with us.