Resolved to Trust God in 2023

“Our soul waits for the Lord;
He is our help and our shield.
For our heart shall rejoice in Him,
Because we have trusted in His holy name.
Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us,
Just as we hope in You.”
~Psalm 33:20-22

Many Americans would agree that 2022 was a bizarre, contentious, and challenging year. And with only a few days into the New Year, 2023 doesn’t look like it will be much different. We are living in a time of uncertainty, chaos, and political polarization. Many Americans are discouraged about these cultural and political trends. It would be easy in such a time to feel overwhelmed and anxious, but we must not allow such feelings to take root.

As we start this new year, we need to remember that our peace is rooted in Christ.

When Jesus was telling His disciples of His departure, He left them with these encouraging words in John 14:27:

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”

We need to hear those words today as much as his disciples needed to hear them then.

The temporary and shallow peace of the world cannot compare to the peace Christ provides. Former pastor Adrian Rogers once said,

“Peace is not the subtraction of problems from life; peace is the addition of power to meet those problems.” 

While in prison in shackles, Paul experienced God’s perfect peace and encouraged other believers, saying,

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

In the coming years, we may have every earthly reason to be anxious, but if we allow worry to take root, it could swallow up joy. Instead, we must bring our worries to God in prayer, trusting that he will replace them with his perfect peace.

Perspective

We have no idea what 2023 will bring. God is the only one who knows exactly what my life and yours will look this coming year and beyond. Yet as Christians, we must learn to trust Him more fully with every aspect of our lives. As I grow older, I have been learning to trust in a deeper way, but I still have so much to learn. I suspect we all do. Too often, I find myself fretting about some aspect of life instead of releasing it to God and trusting that He will work it out in His perfect timing and in His perfect way.

With that in mind, here are some areas of my life where I am striving to trust God in 2023:

• Finances: My wife and I have gone through some lean years in our 28 years of marriage, but the spike in the cost of groceries, gasoline and energy can make me very anxious. Yet, I will trust that no matter what happens in 2023, God will take care of us and meet our every need and even some of our “wants” because He always has!

• Family: I’ve written before about our need for God to be at work in the lives of our children. I want to rest in God’s love–not just for me–but for my children as well. I can’t manufacture godly kids, but I can trust that God will work in both me and my children to bring them to spiritual maturity as they grow and as my wife and I obey God in discipling them in the Word.

• Future: The policies of Illinois are pushing people out of the state. We know that the exodus of people heading for red states like Florida, Tennessee, Indiana, and Texas are at an all-time high. Democrats have a historically high super majority in Springfield and can steamroll any opposition to their agenda.

  They’ve already made Illinois an abortion destination point. They’ve made our government schools indoctrination centers. They’ve legalized high-potency marijuana, expanded gambling, and gone soft on crime. It is bewildering to see how oblivious Leftists are to the consequences of their agenda. Yet if God has called us to remain in this place and fight the good fight, expose evil, and uphold God’s plan for human flourishing, I will trust that God will order our steps as we strive to be faithful.

[Jesus] has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever abandon you,”
so that we confidently say,

“The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid.
What will man do to me?”

~Hebrews 13:5-6~

Written by David E. Smith