Prophetic
Tomorrow, A Brand-New Year is Here!
Jeremiah 29:11-14 – “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” NIV
The context of this passage was the LORD speaking to Israel about their return from the Babylonian captivity, and that, after 70 years, there would be an awakening and God’s plan would be put into play. Israel would seek Him and find Him as they sought Him with their whole heart. As we come to the last day of 2025, my heart cries out for us to Look Forward rather than Backward.
God has plans for us individually and collectively, and those plans include a Hope and a Future! In any situation or at any time when people truly seek the LORD with a whole heart, He demonstrates His power and reveals Himself to them. He has promised that if we Seek Him, we will Find Him. He is not trying to hide from us or make knowing His will, plan, or purpose difficult or impossible to discern. It is in God’s interest for us to Know what He wants and then to do what He directs. Hiding that from us would not serve the purposes of the Kingdom.
Rather than looking back on the disappointments of 2025, let’s look toward the possibilities of 2026. Rather than lamenting over the failures of the past, let’s look toward the victories of the future. Tomorrow or tonight at 12:01 AM, the year 2026 will have fully begun, and God will still be God and His plan and purpose for our lives will still be real and possible.
There is nothing anyone or any power can do that will change that. The devil may try and will try to get you to lose focus on the prime objective and discourage you but resist his temptations and fix your focus squarely on the Throne of Heaven and the Lord Jesus Christ. Take these words in Jeremiah as your personal word from the Lord for 2026 and enter this New Year with HOPE, FAITH, ENTHUSIASM, and CONFIDENCE.
I dare say that none of us saw in totality what we wanted to see in the past year, although we may have seen some significant and wonderful things. The New Year affords us a somewhat clean slate, and we have the opportunity to begin on January 1, 2026, a journey of faith that will be the most exciting and productive year of our lives.
May God be with you as you go through your day!
Useful or Useless?
Exodus 4:10 – “Then Moses said to the Lord, “O my Lord, I am not an eloquent man, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant, for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.”
As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word of God today, the words “useful and useless” filled my consciousness. That may sound strange, but it was the emphasis of the Spirit in my mind. All we are and do fall into one of those two categories.
I never cease to be amazed and amused by Moses in his wilderness encounter with God. His humanity was glaringly apparent. Forty years earlier, he envisioned being Israel’s deliverer. That plan failed, and for 40 years, he’s been in hiding.
Suddenly, God revealed Himself in an unusual way (that’s just like God). You would think that the burning but unburnt bush and the voice of God, as well as the signs, would have ended all resistance, but it didn’t.
In Exodus 4, after God details Moses’ assignment, Moses pushes back. This is the same Moses who was educated and trained in Egypt. A man powerful with words who said, in Exodus 4:10 – “I am not eloquent, neither heretofore nor since Thou hast spoken to Thy servant; for I am a stutterer and slow of speech.”
He has seen the miraculous signs, heard the voice of God Himself, and resists. God was not amused nor impressed. God said, “Who has made man’s mouth? Moses, stop this useless nonsense and be useful for a change! Trust Me!”
Peter’s life was a transition from useless self-focus to useful obedience. From the trial of Jesus until Pentecost, Peter was far more useless than useful. After Pentecost, he was consistently and persistently useful. He lost his FEAR!
Fear robs us. Fear of death or physical harm is a powerful emotion in humans. Uncertainty is terrifying to those who have not transitioned into a position and condition of Complete Trust. Fear of death, loss, religion, and failure are compelling forces in our lives.
To be useful rather than useless, we must SEE JESUS! See Him in our hearts and surrender all to Him. Remember, God uses what we have (Moses’ staff). Peter said, “Such as I have, I give.” What we have given to God makes us useful. Waiting for what we think we need makes us useless. What will we be?
LORD, help us to be useful, not useless for Your Kingdom!
Learning Complete Trust
Genesis 45:5 – “Now, do not be upset and do not be angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me ahead of you to preserve life!”
As I read, prayed, and pondered the Word of God today, the thought of ‘Complete Trust’ filled my mind. That means different things to different people, but what does it mean to God? What does God’s view of ‘Complete Trust’ look like? How is it demonstrated? How does it affect attitude and outlook? Do we have any examples other than Jesus?
In Genesis 41:16, Pharaoh had a second dream and called Joseph to interpret it. In the previous verse, he said, “I hear of you that you can interpret.” He had already done so years earlier. Joseph’s response speaks to his recognition of God’s sovereignty and his dependence on God. He said, “Not without God, I can’t.”
When Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt, and he revealed his identity, he said, (Genesis 45:5) – “Now don’t be grieved, nor displeased with yourselves, that you sold me here; for it was to provide for you that God sent me before you.”
That reveals ‘Complete Trust’ in God and a transformed heart free of every ounce of bitterness, with total forgiveness as a cornerstone.
Joseph’s ‘Complete Trust’ enabled him to fully forgive because he saw life through the lens of God’s purpose rather than as an individual event. It wasn’t about Joseph but the Kingdom of God. The events of life were classroom sessions of becoming. The people involved were just tools or vehicles. The real was the unseen in the spirit. Joseph’s ‘Complete Trust’ transformed his heart and shaped his outlook and worldview. Without it, he would have been retaliatory.
Joseph is a type of Christ, our provider! Jesus looks for ‘Complete Trust’ in all, and from all. Mark 12:28-31 is powerfully revelatory. The commandments obeyed and practiced reveal the heart and exhibit ‘Complete Trust.’
We will not give God ALL until we reach a state of ‘Complete Trust.‘ How can I value another person to that degree unless I see God’s purpose, promise, and provision?
Complete Trust eliminates all doubt and produces fruit. The parable of the fruitless fig tree in Mark 11, in the context of ‘Complete Trust’ and the commandments of Mark 12:28-31, reveals why Jesus was upset with a tree that looked fruitful but had only show and no produce. The life of ‘Complete Trust’ produces because in Trust it obeys, and out of that obedience and transformation of heart, fruit is natural.
Our goal is‘Complete Trust.’
LORD, help us to set our hearts to completely trust You in all things, and at all times!
The Simplicity and Immensity of Trust
Mark 9:25-29 – “Now when Jesus saw that a crowd was quickly gathering, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “Mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” 26 It shrieked, threw him into terrible convulsions, and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, “He is dead!” 27 But Jesus gently took his hand and raised him to his feet, and he stood up. 28 Then, after he went into the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we cast it out?” 29 He told them, “This kind can come out only by prayer.”
As I prayed, read, and contemplated the Word of God today, trust was my heart’s focus—the simplicity and immensity of trust. Before trust in God is solidified, enabling us to live in trusting obedience in all things, there is a time (like Jacob) when we wrestle with God. In that time of inner struggle, a character change transpires. That change brings everything into the proper perspective. Then we live a life to trust!
Joseph’s success was the outflow of trust. The disciples were trained in trust. In Mark 9, we have the story of the demon-possessed boy. The disciples could not cast out the demon. Why? Jesus explained in verses 28-29. It was trust! He said only by fasting and prayer.
Trust reduces self and elevates God. It solidifies trust. It is a portal, not a purchase. It decreases self and increases God. Mark 10:15 reveals a needed truth. The simplicity of trust is the portal to the kingdom. If we trust God with our all, we see Him as He is and live in eager expectation!
All things are possible if we trust Him (believe)! Go forth today expecting God’s fullness to follow you everywhere! Have a fantastic day in Jesus!
Tests and Trials
Genesis 22:1-2 – “Some time after these things, God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am!” Abraham replied. 2 God said, “Take your son—your only son, whom you love, Isaac—and go to the land of Moriah! Offer him up there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains which I will indicate to you.”
Our God reigns! As I read, prayed, and mused on the Word of God today, the thought of tests and trials filled my mind. We have all had them, and almost nobody likes them. We prefer ease, calm seas, and everything working perfectly. We enjoy having plenty!
Abram, who became Abraham by promise, was 100 when his promise came. As he grew accustomed to the presence of the promise and the relative ease of life, he probably thought, “I have arrived!”
Genesis 22:1-2 reveals a truth hard to grasp for most –“The greater the Promise, the greater the Test.” The greater the mission and promise, the greater the need for total trust. Total trust is demonstrated in the heat of the battle.
God said, “Take your promise and kill it on the altar of sacrifice to Me.” Let your promise, dream, vision, and hope die! Most would have said, “Get behind me, Satan.” Abraham believed God! He understood Covenant! He believed in God’s integrity. He believed in God’s power. His words to the servants and to Isaac revealed his trust. Imagine explaining to Sarah if God did not come through!
Later, having been through that demonstration of complete obedience and miraculous provision, Isaac learned to trust completely. In Genesis 26, God gave Isaac instructions. Stay in the place of difficulty, and I will provide. Genesis 26:12 – Wait! A hundredfold return sounds like a blessing, but the addendum tells us that the blessings far exceeded the hundredfold. Great promises bring great trials from which flow great blessings.
But we have to trust and obey! It’s more than verbal or mental assent; it is actually doing what we are told. It requires sacrifice and faith. If God doesn’t, we fail. It may seem like the abandonment of reason. God is either totally trustworthy, or He is not.
Genesis 26:20-22 reveals this truth. Isaac dug wells that were named in a way to reveal the process. (Aska) – difficulty. (Satana) – adversary (Rehoboth) – enlarge. First is need, followed by difficulty; then comes opposition, and persistence brings enlargement. We reap IF we don’t quit! We win IF we don’t stop. We harvest IF we don’t quit. So, don’t even think about quitting! Total obedience brings total blessing!
LORD, help us to embrace our tests and trials and press forward into the fullness of Your reward!
Roy's Covenant Corner 