There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them (Exodus 15:25)
Reflecting on 2025, you will recall experiences that were not the way you wanted them to be. There were days of trouble and weeks that were very challenging. But it’s in the difficult days that God will test our commitment to His Word and will. We may have figured this out, but we find it hard to fully surrender to God’s testing. What can we say about 2025? We can talk of it as we did in the years before: 2025 has been another year lived in and under God’s testing. For ancient Israel, they came under God’s testing in the wilderness of Shur. The text reads: “they went three days in the wilderness and found no water” (Exodus 15:22). Life’s wilderness moments are hard to cope with. But this was the very place of God’s testing. 2025 had its wilderness moments when we had to trust God to supply that which was needed. Under God’s wilderness testing, faith cannot be a mere idealized theory – it must focus on the life application of God’s truth. The first generation that came out of Egypt was bent on disbelief and disobedience – unwilling to be faithful when tested. In the tests experienced in 2025, we learned some invaluable spiritual lessons for 2026. We learned anew that God is worthy of our trust and obedience. Thank God for the tests and lessons we learned in 2025. Let’s look up and get ready for the new year ahead! Vhh