There is something about the beginning of a new year that has always appealed to me. Perhaps it is the clearly defined end of one thing and the start of another.
Or maybe it is how hope seems to arise as we think of all that the next 365 might hold for us. As Lord Alfred Tennyson so poetically stated, “Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come whispering ‘It will be happier’” (The Foresters, 1892).
I believe that I also appreciate the beginning of a new year because there is nothing ambiguous or uncertain about 12:00 a.m. on January 1st. It is faithful. One year will end and a new year will begin, as sure as the sun comes up.
Five years ago as the clock struck midnight and 2018 rolled into 2019, I realized that I did not care or honestly desire for the sun to rise ever again. Seven billion people around the world were joyfully celebrating the start of a new year, but I had never felt more alone in my life.
As everyone shouted “Happy New Year!” I made sure to fake a smile and offer an obligatory “Happy New Year” to avoid any questions or raise concern, but I could genuinely not imagine anything “happy” or “new” suddenly happening in my life just because we had turned the page of the calendar.
I was walking through one of the darkest seasons of my life, and the enemy had me convinced that things would always be like that. I was so blinded by grief and weighed down by anxiety and depression that I genuinely could not even imagine how my life would ever get better.
I was certain that only bad things would ever happen to me, and what’s worse, I even believed that the Lord had ordained for all of my days to be filled with a heaviness that I was simply meant to bear as a testament to my faith during the never-ending storm.
If you have never struggled with anxiety or depression, then this may sound dramatic or even silly. I get it.
If you are a Christian who has never had your faith rattled, then I am sure this sounds blasphemous. I understand that, too. And sadly, at one point in my life, I probably would have read this post and thought the same as you.
I was a worship leader and youth pastor, for crying out loud. I had been raised in church my whole life. I knew what the Bible said, I taught and sang about it every week, and I truly believed His Word with all of my heart.
Well, I believed it for everyone else’s lives.
So why am I starting off the year with a post like this? Well, over the past 11 days I’ve read so many posts and watched countless videos of people bringing in the new year with joy and hopeful anticipation of what 2024 may bring.
As I’ve personally prayed and asked the Lord what He wants for my own life and that of my family this year, I’ve felt an excitement stirring in my heart. I have such an expectancy that the Lord is going to do mighty things this year!
And strangely enough, it was actually in the middle of this peace and joy while seeking the Lord over the past two weeks that I was reminded of a time when the thought of a new year just felt…unbearable. A time when just thinking about 365 more days filled with grief, heartache, debilitating anxiety, and a blanket of depression that I could not shrug off felt so incredibly overwhelming.
I remember praying that the Lord would somehow allow me to just lie down, go to sleep, and wake me up whenever things were better. I simply did not think that I had the physical or mental fortitude in that season to trudge through another year like I had just experienced. But God…
Thankfully, I was surrounded by faithful men and women of God who refused to let me just lie down and give up. They sent me encouraging messages daily, called me when I didn’t reply, and even came to my house and literally got me out of bed when I just wanted to curl up and sleep until a better day, month, or year rolled around.
I think one of the most invaluable things they did was to refuse to let my hope completely die. There may have been nothing but embers barely even flickering, but through their intercessory prayers, life was slowly breathed back into my faith.
One thing in particular stands out in my memory. A spiritual mentor kept telling me that “this could be the year that everything changes.” Every time I told her that things would always be like this, she consistently reminded me that we serve a God of “suddenlies” and that I could not give up, because I could be right on the verge of a breakthrough.
She would send me scripture throughout the day and remind me that I was not stuck in this season, but simply going through it, and that I must hang on just a little longer.
Her encouragement and the prayers of so many other family and friends are what kept me going. Their hope for my life and genuine belief that God had better days for me was contagious. Without realizing it, I began to feel the tiniest bit of hope catching flame once again.
And just like that, my life turned around. My prayers were answered and so many of the words and promises that had been spoken over me for the past decade came to fruition in 2019.
I know that it is not a coincidence that the enemy came after me so hard in 2018 to the point that I was ready to give up. He knew that 2019 was the year of my “suddenlies” and if he could just get me to lose all hope, then maybe I would not walk in the fullness of what God has called me to do for His kingdom.
I am forever grateful for the Godly men and women who rallied around me and stood in the gap when I could not believe for myself. Their faithfulness gave me strength when I had none of my own.
If you are in a season where you feel like things will always be the same, then you have to first recognize that the enemy is trying to steal your hope. The Bible talks endlessly about hope and its significance, so you should not be surprised that the enemy would try to attack you there.
David said, “Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress where I will not be shaken” (Psalm 62:5-6, NLT, emphasis added).
I encourage you to read through all of the “suddenlies” in the Bible that show how God moved in an instant. Here are just a few examples, and I encourage you to actually go to that verse and read the accounts in full to have a better picture of how we serve the God of suddenlies:
“And Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced because God had provided for the people, for the thing came about suddenly.” (2 Chronicles 29:36, ESV, emphasis added)
“‘Look! I am sending my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Then the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to his Temple. The messenger of the covenant, whom you look for so eagerly, is surely coming,’ says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.” (Malachi 3:1, NLT, emphasis added)
Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! (Acts 16:25-26, NLT, emphasis added)
“Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting.” (Acts 2:2, NLT, emphasis added)
“As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him.” (Acts 9:3, NLT, emphasis added)
“Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them.” (Luke 2:9, NLT, emphasis added)
“That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them.” (Luke 24:13-15, NLT, emphasis added)
In so many of the instances above, circumstances looked quite hopeless for those involved. However, God is so much greater than our circumstances and He thrives in impossible situations. If your situation looks hopeless, then that only means that you are living in the perfect environment for God to show up and show out in your life!
Friend, I don't know what you walked through in 2023 or what you may still be walking through as we have entered 2024. What I do know is that nothing takes Papa God by surprise, and He is not deterred by the situation in which you may currently find yourself.
Perhaps you are just so very tired and cannot imagine having to face another year like you just experienced. I have been there, and I know how lonely and scary it feels. But as I have said before, and I will say again: You do not want to die. You just want the pain to stop.
Just hang on a little longer, because things will get better. You are going through a season; you are not stuck in it.
If you or anyone you know may be struggling with suicidal thoughts or emotional distress, please do not suffer in silence. Please call 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline right now to get help.
Also, do not underestimate the power of reading scripture aloud to encourage yourself during this time! The Holy Bible is the only written document that is living and breathing with the power of God Almighty. I strongly encourage you to search verses in the bible that speak about hope. I’ll even make it easy for you to get started and add a link right here to the Bible Study Tool: Hope Bible Verses.
I want to end this post with a prayer for the new year, especially for those who may be entering 2024 with a heavy heart, despair, depression, anxiety, addiction, or anything else that may be holding you back. You are not alone, and the Lord promises to be close to the brokenhearted (Psalm 34:18).
Papa God, I come to you this evening and want to first and foremost give you thanks for this day. Thank you for giving me another opportunity to walk in your creation and encounter those you put in my path today. Thank you for all of the times that you have whispered to me in the quiet and made your presence known. Thank you for bringing me out of seasons of grief, depression, and anxiety and restoring my hope in you once again.
I want to bring to you the hearts of those who may be struggling tonight in their own dark season. We have entered a new year, but they are still shackled by the events of the past years. I ask that you would be their encouragement tonight. Let them feel your presence closer than their next breath.
Send people to minister to them and allow their words of faith and Godly wisdom to be like the balm of Gilead over the souls of those in pain tonight. I pray that this year will be the year of their breakthrough! I pray that in 2024 they will see firsthand that you are the “God of suddenlies!”
Papa, we know that nothing is too difficult for you, and we know that you are working behind the scenes right now to restore the lives of those who love you.
If anyone is reading this and does not know you as their personal Lord and savior, I pray that the Holy Spirit would move and stir their hearts to repentance and to declare that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died for their sins and rose again on the third day!
Jesus, please let them feel you closer than their next breath right now wherever they may be. I humbly ask that you would move on their behalf this year and that they would be a walking testimony of your goodness and love!
Lord, please forgive us for where we have sinned. We love you and I thank you for what you are doing not only in my life this year, but for everyone who has submitted their life to you. We give you all of the honor and the glory! In Jesus’ precious holy name we pray, amen.
As always, we pray that the Lord blesses you greatly and that you forever look to Him as your personal guide and Savior as we all continue to travel between two worlds. 🤎