5 Assumptions to Release in Order to Receive God’s Best in the New Year

As another year commences, there is a harmful misconception that a new year is like a blank canvas for us to create any picture of life we wish.

I often assume that I can start anew, as if I were a movie scriptwriter adjusting the plot and casting myself as a better, skinnier, healthier version of myself.

While the choice is ours to make changes and commit to healthier rhythms, a new year is anything but a blank canvas. For many of us, we have commitments locked in for the next few months. We still shoulder heavy burdens and difficult relationships or feel the sting of past grief and disappointment that threaten our capacity for something new.

This year, however, I wonder what it would look like to release old assumptions and, in return, open the door to receive God’s best.

1. Release the assumption that everyone else has a better life. Receive the fact that God has authored a unique story for your life.

If there is one lie that consistently robs our hearts and yours of receiving what God has for us, it is the belief that everyone else has a better life. We scroll past pictures and assume their children don’t argue, their house doesn’t collect dust, and their relationships are thriving.

Even when we know better, we allow idealism and assumptions to create a false narrative that there must also be an easier way. Self-pity and discontent swell and crash like waves all year long, stealing delight in our own beautiful life.

But God reminds us that while He has the power to speak life and light into creation, He has also written our unique stories on purpose. Ephesians 2:10 declares that “we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (NIV) So, look around, acknowledge the gift of the life you’ve been given, and choose to live it well for the glory of God.

2. Release the assumption that if you want something, you must make it happen. Receive the fact that God is wise in what he chooses to give and take away.

Striving is not something I write on my resolution list, yet it often defines my heart posture. As a goal-oriented person, a list of unfinished aspirations remains that plagues my downtime. I must remind myself often that it is okay to rest with no other agenda.

So, to release the assumption that who I am is not the sum of what I do contradicts my flesh. My heart tells me that if I want to accomplish anything meaningful in life, it is up to me to make it happen. Yet often my plans are changed, dreams squelched, and steps adjusted without my permission.

Job reminds us in chapter 1 that the Lord chooses what to give and what to take away. As we grow better acquainted with the character of God, we can trust his discernment and discipline in our lives. This year, let’s rest from feeling like it’s up to us to have a meaningful life. Even as we make plans and prepare our hearts, let’s be open to how God will determine our steps. (Proverbs 16:9)

3. Release the assumption that if you have more money, everything will be easier. Receive the fact that God has sovereignly given you what you need for what he is asking of you.

Few admit it, but most people feel that more money would solve many of life’s problems. If I asked what you would do with an extra $500, I bet you could spout off an item or two with little thought. In fact, we naturally keep a running list of wishes and desires that money could address if the opportunity arose.

But Mark 4:19 warns us that the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.” Meaning, if we continue to pursue money as our functional savior, it will prevent us from a right relationship with our true Savior, Jesus Christ.

God has continued to impress upon my heart, after a season of job loss, that He sovereignly decides what is deemed good for us in His timing. There have been years of abundance and years of scarcity, and each one has taught me valuable lessons in contentment. So, remember this year to receive what God gives and acknowledge that it is enough.

4. Release the assumption that more is always better. Receive the fact that God is capable of sufficiently filling the gaps in your life.

The temptation to believe in the myth of more is a real one. We believe that more (fill in the blank) is needed to provide a truly life worth living. Although we know it is a losing battle, we somehow continue to chase more, as if it were possible to obtain. Skinnier, smarter, younger, prettier – you name it – the carrot moves our desires, and we dedicate our resources to their achievement.

But what if there is purpose in the gaps of life? When we don’t have time to do everything we want, or we keep struggling with our weight, perhaps they are invitations to anchor our full identity in Christ alone.

If you feel empty, lacking, or less than, allow Ephesians 3:18-19 to be your prayer for this new year. May you “together with all the Lord’s holy people, grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

5. Release the assumption that health is about external circumstances. Receive the fact that our spiritual health is the foundation of all.

I admit, health remains at the top of my resolutions each year. At my age, discussing protein intake, strength training, and supplement use is a common conversation starter. Yet we tend to focus on outward health markers, such as clothing sizes and skin smoothness, to measure our standing, without even considering our spiritual wellness.

When God is directing Samuel to identify the next King of Israel in 1 Samuel 16:7, the Lord tells him, “Do not consider his appearance or his height. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

If this is true, then the implications are profoundly significant for you and me this year. We can pursue health to steward our bodies for his service wisely, but we must not ignore the condition of our hearts. In fact, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” (Proverbs 4:23)

As we move forward into the new year, let us assess and release the assumptions that stand in the way of truly accepting what God has in store for us. May we trust in his goodness and believe in his promise that one day, all really will be made new. (Revelation 21:5)