Isaiah 43: 18-19 "“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.""
Do you remember the days when you were driving with your children in the back seat and they would begin to argue? You probably kept one hand on the wheel and were swatting at them in the back seat. What happens when we have one hand on the wheel but we look back? We begin heading in the wrong direction, don’t we. We take our eyes off the road, our arm turns which turns the wheel and before we know it the damage has been done. Looking back can cause us to go off course and possibly bring injury not only to ourselves but others as well.
God says, “Do not look back. Stay focused on me. Do not dwell on the past. It’s history. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” God was telling the people, that while He did some amazing things for them in the past, they haven’t seen anything yet. He was going to rescue them again: “I am making a way in the desert, and streams in the wasteland.” God’s people were trapped in a country that was surrounded by one of the most barren, most deadly deserts in the world. Even if they escaped from their captors, they would never make it through the desert. But God was going to do the impossible – He was going to set up a highway for them to walk on. He was going to provide not only water, but food and clothing that would never wear out. God wanted them to focus on Him, trust what He was doing and not look back.
This is the “new thing” that God eventually did do for the Jews during that time in history. They were eventually released from captivity. They eventually survived that difficult trip through the desert and returned to their homeland. What does this have to do with Christ? Can you see Christ in these words that we have read. God says, “I am making a way in the desert.” Jesus says, “I Am The Way, the Truth and the Life.” God says, “I am making streams in the wasteland.” Jesus says, “Whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.”
Just as God was doing a new thing for Israel, rescuing them, so also right now, God is doing a new thing for you and me. He is rescuing us, rescuing us from this world, which is passing away. Rescuing us from relationships that are toxic and burdensome. Rescuing us from the mundane and the dreary. Rescuing us from the love of money and the temporary pleasures of this world. Rescuing us from difficult, trying situations . . .God asks in this scripture, “Do you not perceive it?” or in my words, “Do you not recognize what I am trying to do?” “Can’t you see that I am trying to get you to look ahead?” “Do you not trust me with your life? I am working on your behalf! Have faith dear child, I am doing a new thing!”
Jesus is our highway in the desert. He is our oasis, our stream in the wasteland. Jesus is the new thing that God is doing for us. Don't look back! Take hold of His hand and let Him lead you in the way He wants you to go. I promise, you'll have no regrets!
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