There’s something refreshing about beginning a new year. It’s a time to reflect on the past year and refocus our goals for the upcoming year. It’s an opportunity to put off old patterns and embrace healthy habits. God’s Word encourages us to regularly reflect on our lives: “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is” (Eph. 5:15–17).

However, as we end one year and begin another, we can sometimes feel like our progress is painfully slow. It may feel like we’re not moving forward at all but stuck, relearning the same lessons again and again. Perhaps you’re recycling some of the same goals from last year in hopes of better outcomes in 2025. There’s no pencil tick on the wall measuring our spiritual growth from year to year. However, as Rachel Jones writes, “Sanctification may be slow and sometimes hard to observe, but it’s significant.”

As we start this new year, we can be encouraged that God gives us the means by which we grow. Regular habits of prayer, fasting, Bible reading, Scripture memory, and church attendance fortify and strengthen our souls. Spiritual growth may not be as fast-paced as we desire or follow a linear trajectory, but over time, God is producing a harvest of righteousness and peace. Because the Spirit is at work, we can begin 2025 with fresh hope—his power is able to do more than we can ask or imagine (Eph. 3:20). 

Holding onto Hope,