One way God is not like us is that He is outside of time itself. This is not so easy for us to picture, but God explains clearly that He “inhabits eternity” in Isaiah 57:15. We're created beings living in time, so we experience time much differently than our God, who says “I am the first and I am the last.” (Isaiah 48:12). As we look forward to the New Year, how astounding it is to realize that God is already there! How can we relate to someone who says He is "the one who is and was and is coming?" (Revelation 1:8) What we experience in our lifetime has a lot to do with beginnings — and endings; Where is God in all of these times?

He Is.

We like to celebrate New Year’s Eve/Day, anniversaries, new beginnings, memories of friends and family, as well as just being in the presence of a loved one. Does God experience time as we do? Does He also like to look back and remember? Does He encourage us to make a fresh start? He does all of these things and more because He is not limited in time as we are. He lives outside of our time, but He is with us inside of our time also in the form of the Holy Spirit. “Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” (John 8:58) What does that mean? It means that Jesus is in the present with Abraham, just as He is present now with you and me. God’s faithfulness is a miracle. He is.

He Was.

God instructed the Israelites to look back on the way He had worked in their lives, to remember how He had saved them from slavery. Deuteronomy 5:15 says, “You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.” We are also to remember that God’s faithfulness means that He has provided a way to save each person in the world through Jesus Christ, His Son. At just the right time (Galatians 4:4), Jesus came to give Himself as the perfect sacrifice for all sins of those who would trust his name. “By his one sacrifice he has forever set free from sin the people he brings to God” (Hebrews 10:14). He was our complete offering of sin. He has endured the suffering that sin causes and He triumphed over the raging power of sin by rising again. He was.

He Will Be.

For fellow believers, God will always be present with us in every step that we take from this point forward. He is accessible, available, listening, caring and completely present. He promised this to the Jews long ago.

In Genesis 28:15, he reminds His people of the promises in His covenant, “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” He also promises us through Jesus that He will always be with us: “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:39 He will be.