Bible Study Notes

Preparing to close out the old year and start a new one can be scary for some of us. Seeing what’s going on in the world in these end times can be frightening if we have the wrong perspective. It’s true that we live in dangerous times; however, we have supernatural protection to keep us safe from harm. Trusting in this allows us to be brave and courageous as we move forward.

Bravery is defined as having mental or moral strength to face danger, fear, or difficulty. We don’t have that kind of strength on our own; it only comes from God. Meditating on the safety and security He provides moves us out of fear into joy. “…For the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). This is something the world doesn’t have.

Without God, the thought of entering into a chaotic future would be too much to handle; the threats from our external environment would be intimidating and disheartening. However, He has promised His children good things, and nothing around us is capable of derailing those promises. All we need to do is to stay strong. “This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9, NLT). God said this to Joshua, and He’s saying the same thing to us today.

There will be tough times ahead, but we don’t have to be afraid. The evil in the world doesn’t have the power to overwhelm us when we ally ourselves with God. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4). When the devil starts whispering his lies and trying to instill fear in us, we can be confident that we’re secure, no matter what.

The spiritual battle we’ve been engaged in all year long will intensify in the future, and our focus will be critical as we look ahead to what’s next. Focusing on the natural allows Satan to distract us from the truth. By comparison, focusing on God’s promises of protection strengthens us against enemy attacks and ambushes. “This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. For he will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease…Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the day. Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday. Though a thousand fall at your side, though ten thousand are dying around you, these evils will not touch you” (Psalm 91:2, 3, 5-7, NLT). Believing these promises gives us courage. 

There will always be enemies who oppose us, but they’re no match for God’s strength and power. God kept David safe, despite the perils around him and Saul’s attempts to kill him. “…The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety. He is my refuge, my savior, the one who saves me from violence. I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and he saved me from my enemies” (2 Samuel 22:2-4, NLT). The same God who delivered David will do the same for us. We have that same level of protection

Every twelve months, we get an opportunity to make a new start in life. We’ve spent the past year doing our best; sometimes we were successful, other times we missed the mark. Reviewing our ups and downs and looking ahead to what the future could bring requires that we mentally toss the things that didn’t work for us and carry over the things that did. Any godly wisdom we learned from our past experiences tells us that prayers for God’s guidance will keep us moving in the right direction.

None of us want the negative things from our past to linger. However, sometimes we get stuck in something painful and have trouble shaking it off. Dwelling on our past mistakes gives the devil a chance to paralyze us on our spiritual walk. Thankfully, as born-again Christians, we can start off the new year with a clean slate because God has chosen to forget our past. “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NLT).

There will definitely be challenges up ahead for us to deal with. We’re incapable of conquering them the way God wants us to without prayer. Thankfully, no matter how many times we’ve messed up in the past, and will continue to do so, God sees us as righteous because of our faith in Jesus Christ. He’s always willing to listen when we pray. “…The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results” (James 5:16, NLT).

Having the proper mindset as we move forward into the new year is critical if we want to see positive change that lasts. Our thoughts exert a strong influence on the direction our lives, and regularly communing with God through prayer lets Him shape our thoughts. A consistent prayer life should therefore be the bedrock guiding everything we think. “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6, 7, NLT). The world is full of worries, but God doesn’t want us to take them with us on our journey.

The negative influences around us make it easy to slip into an ungrateful attitude, but choosing to be thankful for all we have gives our prayers power and authority. “Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving” (Colossians 4:2, NKJV). A grateful attitude puts us in a position to receive continual blessings from God. It keeps us mindful of all that He has already done for us and continually reminds us to count our blessings.

There’s no telling what will happen in the coming year. “Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth” (Proverbs 27:1, NKJV). Not all of it will be good. Some crazy things will happen, but there’s no need to fear because we won’t go through them alone when we depend on God as our source. Letting Him lead us into the future protects us from blundering and being blindsided by bad situations.

As we prepare to start another chapter in our lives, God’s continued presence gives us hope for the future. We don’t need a crystal ball when the Father is directing our steps.