"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” – Isaiah 43:18-19
 
When I was a little girl, I heard this verse for the first time from my grandmother, who had very graciously included me in her morning quiet time. I was confused – how can the same God who never changes bring about something new?

How can the same Heavenly Father who has always existed dream up and create things that have a very clear beginning? And I will be perfectly candid with you. I'm still a little confused about it. But as I have grown, my confusion has taken on a sense of wonder. How amazing is it that we can know and serve and love a God who has known all things since before the beginning of time, and still delights in being creative for his children’s sake? 
 
As spring approaches, I find myself filled with gratitude. Admittedly, a lot of this gratitude is for the warmer weather and longer days I know God is bringing our way soon. But more of it is because spring always reminds me that God’s ways are not our ways. 
 
Humans view things in seasons and cycles, we're constantly changing and unstable, and we fall into patterns of expectation. We expect spring to come because it has always come after winter. We expect morning traffic will rub us the wrong way before we even get to the office, because it finds a way to do so every day. As much as humans are capable of creativity, we are inherently beings of expectation and pattern. 

Not so with God. His Word says in Lamentations, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

Notice that God’s love is described as steadfast, and his mercies are always new. While his character and love remain stable, his creativity and mercy is boundless. He is the Author of all good things (James 1:17). He is not tied to pattern or expectation, and he is constantly creating things and putting things into motion that remind us he is on the throne. He doesn't do things simply because that’s the way they have always been done. He transforms the brokenness of the world into purpose and beauty and is actively creating new things for our good and for his glory! 
 
This spring, when you encounter things you may have come to expect, like the sun shining, or the morning dew on your lawn or colorful flowers, try to take a moment to remember an eternal God created these things with you in mind.

He interrupted what had always been to craft birds that sing and leaves that grow again after a long winter – all to remind you he is loving and has good plans in store for you. When your mind threatens to revert to expectation, remind yourself we can expect God to fulfill his promises, and he is always bringing about something new.

Written by Audra Beaty, social media strategist for Buckner International.