Happy New Year, and welcome to a wonderful new era!

Are you excited about this year? I sure am. I absolutely love new beginnings, and every new year is a new chance to see God, know God, and do amazing things with God like we have never done before. This new year—today—is the beginning of the rest of your life!

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But does the beginning of a new year really matter to God?

Once upon a time, I heard someone cynically declare that the New Year holiday was just a fabricated, commercialized reason to get people excited. They did not believe that New Year’s Day initiated a new season at all, and they didn’t think there was any indicator that God would do anything new or different in the new year than He did in the old one.

To that, I say: “Hogwash!”

In case you might have been of the same cynical mindset, I want to talk to you about this topic today. I don’t want you to miss anything wonderful that our amazing, good, good Father has in store for you this year!

So does the new year really matter to God, according to the Bible? YES!

It all goes back to the nature of God. Our God LOVES newness, and He anoints the new. Additionally, you were created in His image, so it’s in your DNA to thrive on newness as well.

Think about it. For example:

• Remember the last time you receive a new-to-you vehicle, and suddenly you were inspired to keep it clean when you struggled to keep your car clean before.
• Bring to mind that time when you started a new semester during your school days, and you were suddenly inspired to get organized and study hard—even if you had been struggling before.
• Recall your most recent birthday, when you thanked God for the year behind you and began looking forward to the year ahead.

Do you remember what that rush of enthusiasm felt like for you on all of those occasions? It was fun and exciting, right? Well, enthusiasm literally means to be filled with God—and HE was the Giver of all that joy and excitement!

My friend, whether you realize it or not, GOD is excited about your new year and new season!

Focus your attention on Him right now. Think about His character, His nature, and His attributes. For example:

• He is the God of new beginnings.
• He is the God of new chances and opportunities.
• He is the God of new ideas, of renewed strength, new hope, restored faith, and fresh fire.

It’s true that God Himself never changes. However, we have to understand that newness is simply part of Who He is. Nothing in Him ever fades away or wears out, so He is never anything BUT new! There are no parts of Him that ever break or need to be repaired. Every aspect of who He is—His nature, character, and attributes—is perfect and shiny and without defect; in other words, He is completely and utterly NEW, despite being forever the same, at all times!

Because God Himself never breaks, wears down, gets tired, or wears out, it’s in His nature to make all things new.

That’s why the book of Revelation tells us:

“Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful” (Revelation 21:5).

It’s also why Lamentations 2:22-23 says:

“Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness” (Lamentations 2:22-23).

God’s mercies are new every morning because He makes all things new. He makes all things new because that’s what He loves to do; it’s Who He is. You could even say that making all things new is God’s favorite hobby! After all, isn’t that what He does every time He saves a lost soul by the blood of Jesus Christ? As it says in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new”!

What’s the moral of the story? Simply this:

Right now, we are starting a new year on the calendar—and it’s a new day for you in God’s eyes, too.

Our Father wants to make all things new in your life, both today and every day; this week and every week; this year and every year. But the question is, will you receive that newness from Him?

The new energy and inspiration that you are sensing right now, at the top of this new year, are God’s anointing. They aren’t just fake emotions or sensations in your head; they are manifestations of the enthusiasm of God. The sense of excitement you feel is God’s anointing. He’s sitting down on you with power for your new day.

So the question is: Will you receive God’s anointing on your “new” today?

God’s precious Holy Spirit is brooding over you right now. He wants to make all things new for you this year. Will you surrender to His creative and regenerative touch? Will you jump into His river of newness—the river that comes only through the indwelling of His Spirit and by personal relationship with Jesus Christ—and allow your life to be transformed in His presence?

Beloved, God is ministering His newness to you. Right now, today.

So I challenge you right now: Steward the anointing on your new.

Embrace Holy Spirit’s anointing for the new and the fresh. Run with it! Allow yourself to dive into the river of His mercies, which are new for you this very day. In this new year—and indeed, in every new month, week, and day—allow yourself to walk in the newness of the Lord.

Yes, this new year matters to God. This New Year’s holiday season matters to God. (Yes, even if it’s only the new year on the Gregorian calendar, and not the Hebraic calendar!) Our God is the One who makes all things new, and He wants to fill you with His newness to you right now.

Is your heart open and ready to receive newness from the Lord this year? If so, take a moment and leave a brief prayer for your own new year in the comments, so we can touch and agree with you!

Jamie Rohrbaugh equips people to walk in the manifest presence of God. She is the author of Radical Prayer, Radical God: 25 Prayers that Bring Heaven to Earth and Speak Life Volume 1: Chart Your Course with Your Words. She blogs for a global readership at FromHisPresence.com, where she writes about prayer, the prophetic word, living supernaturally, inner healing, and Kingdom wealth. Her writing is featured on YouVersion, Charisma Magazine, The Elijah List, Spirit Fuel, and various other ministry outlets. Receive free encouragement and equipping through her podcast, Take Your Territory with Jamie Rohrbaugh, which you can download anytime on iTunes or Spotify.

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