Finding the “Happy” in Every New Year
This blog is a word of encouragement for all of us asking, “What’s so happy about the New Year?” It’s a reasonable question considering our current cultural moment.
2024 began with Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas, Hezbollah’s escalating attacks from Lebanon, the international-trade-threatening piracy of Iran’s proxies in the Red Sea and a multiplying global chorus demanding Israel’s destruction!
At the same time global hostility toward Messiah’s followers grows. In Africa, India, and the Middle East, Christians are being killed. In our own nation, once commonly held biblical values are vilified and punishable by law. Our lives may not be threatened but our livelihoods and relationships are. We are threatened with firing, or social cancelation by employers, corporations, institutions, government agencies, and even cherished family and friends who demand our allegiance in declaring evil good and good evil.
So, what is there to be happy about in the New Year? Happiness in 2024 springs from recognizing God’s hand even in the hard stuff.
I was reminded of this recently while meditating on Psalm 105 which begins by calling Israel to “Give thanks to the Lord…Sing to Him, sing praises…Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad” (v.1–3). What motivates this call to “happiness”? It is recounting the wonders of God’s activity on Israel’s behalf.
Starting with God’s sovereign protection of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob during their wanderings, the psalmist rehearses God’s involvement in Israel’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt and His provision in the wilderness. The psalm comes full circle by tying Israel’s deliverance and their subsequent conquest and enjoyment of the land back to God’s promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
As I read the psalm’s recounting of these events I was struck by the following aspects of God’s work:
“And He called for a famine upon the land; He broke the whole staff of bread” (Psalm 105:16).
“He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave” (Psalm 105:17).
“And He caused His people to be very fruitful and made them stronger than their adversaries. He turned their heart to hate His people, to deal craftily with His servants” (Psalm 105:24–25).
To summarize – included in the wondrous works that Israel was exhorted to recount and be glad in is the fact that their God: called for” a famine that impacted millions of people in Egypt and future Israel. The famine was God’s doing, not simply a result of shifting weather patterns.
“sent” Joseph into slavery. God was the reason Joseph was deprived of his freedom and favored place before his father Jacob.
“turned” the hearts of their enemies to reject and misuse them. By blessing and prospering Israel, God brought about the ire of their enemies.
In emphasizing this, the psalmist is not diminishing the agency or culpability of Joseph’s brothers or Pharaoh and his officers. Rather he is challenging Israel to see and worship God for who He is – absolutely in control!
Here lies the root of a happy new year for Israel and Messiah’s followers – rejoicing and gladness (i.e., biblical happiness) spring from seeing God’s hand in the big picture, especially when it includes painful trials. Even when there are international food shortages, gross personal injustice, or awful national persecution, God is in control working out something bigger and better than the temporal ease of His people.
Psalm 105 teaches us that even in the hardest times, God is bringing His big-picture plan for Israel to fruition. Whether in famine, personal affliction, or national hostility, He is there, actively making His promise to Abraham and his descendants (physical and spiritual) a reality. The psalm shows us how God did so in the past and challenges us to believe He is still doing so today.
Perhaps it was the Apostle Paul’s life-long immersion in texts such as Psalm 105 that undergirded his encouragement to struggling believers in Rome, and his ecstatic response to God’s plan for Israel and the church:
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!” (Romans 11:33).
What is so happy about the new year? This year, and every year, God is actively working in national Israel, the church, and our lives to bring His big-picture plan to pass.
As this year unfolds, and especially when temporal happiness recedes, we can be found giving thanks to the Lord, singing praises to Him with hearts of gladness as we recall God’s loving and faithful hand. May we recognize that even in times of great personal or national trial and difficulty, God is presently working out His big picture promises for Israel, the Church, and all who are called!
Written by Dan, Life in Messiah Board Member
Join us in making this new year “happy” by praying:
that the people of Israel will find their hope and joy in Messiah Jesus who alone is worthy to bring God’s big picture to fruition.
that God’s big picture will keep Life in Messiah field staff energized and encouraged, especially as they face opposition.
that God’s church will find its joy in the unfolding of God’s big picture for Israel and the nations.