Scripture Meditation for the New Year

Are you ready for a new year? A fresh beginning? A clean start? I love opening the pages to my new planner each year full of clean empty pages, full of hope and possibility.

The sad reality is there is no new beginning on January 1. The dirty dishes we leave in the sink on December 31 will still be there waiting for us in 2022. We wake up in the same bed with the same mess around us, the same hurts in our hearts, and the same fears for the future.

But Jesus can bring something new into our new year.

I have put together ten verses to guide a New Year meditation. I hope you have a few moments this week to sit quietly with God and allow Him to prepare your heart for something new.
When I meditate on scripture, I ask myself three simple questions:

1. What does this verse say about God and His character?
2. What does this verse mean for me in my current season?
3. What do I need to do or change because of this truth?

As you meditate on these scriptures, I pray the Holy Spirit will minister to your heart, heal your hurt and brokenness, and fill you with an excitement and hope for God’s call on your life for the future.

A New Year Meditation

1. Invite God to speak to you.
   “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23–24 (NIV)
2. Take off the old ready to put on the new.
   “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4:22-24
3. Give God your anxious thoughts.
   “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:7
4. Give God the things you are worried about.
   “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:34
5. Commit your fears to God.
   “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10
6. Forgive those who have wronged you.
   “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Luke 6:37
7. Submit your pride to God.
   “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.” Romans 12:3
8. Bring your tiredness to God to find rest.
   “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28
9. Examine your thought life.
   “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Philippians 4:8
10. Invite God’s presence to go with you into the new year.
    “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

God wants to do something new. God wants to continue to transform our lives into the image of His Son, Jesus. God wants us to enjoy abundant life, life to the full. His truth has the power to trade beauty for ashes when we trust in Him and submit our lives to Him in obedience and faith.

You may want to use the insights from this scripture meditation to guide your goal-setting for the new year, inviting God to guide you. And the beauty of Jesus’ new beginning is that we can take hold of it on any day of the year. It doesn’t have to be January 1 for God to give you a fresh start and begin something new. His mercies are new every morning.

May God bless you. Happy new year.

Christine is a writer who packed up her city life to live in an RV and travel full-time around Australia with her husband. Christine writes about faith, self-care, and simple living in her blog, Living with Margins. For more blogs from her, click here. You can listen to our Bible studies by tuning in to your favorite radio station, listening to our podcast on iTunes, listening through TuneIn, Spotify, or Stitcher online radio, or watching on YouTube.