Michael strode out in lockstep with his fellow recruits, brimming with a confidence he had not possessed just a few days earlier. The shock of his new life in the United States Navy was giving way to a growing military bearing.

But then Michael did the unthinkable. He broke ranks and stood by the side of the road. “What are you doing?” screamed his division commander. (He said a couple of other things too.)

“Petty officer, you can do whatever you wish,” Michael responded, “but this is the first time I have seen snow.” Michael Ojeah is from Nigeria.

In Matthew 3, God announced something entirely new that should cause us to break ranks and stare in wonder. John had just baptized Jesus when a voice from heaven boomed, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings Me great joy” (v.17). It was a direct reference to a prophecy from Isaiah 42. The people listening would have known that it pointed to the promised Messiah.

That passage from Isaiah foretells a new thing. Messiah is the One who brings hope to the most downtrodden among us. “He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle,” says the prophet. “He will bring justice to all who have been wronged” (vv.3-4). Through the Messiah, God would provide “a light to guide the nations” (v.6), not just the nation of Israel. It was indeed a new thing—a new hope for all who would hear and receive it.

For his sense of wonder at snow, Michael Ojeah got acquainted with the snow shovel handed to him by his division commander. Our sense of wonder at God’s provision for our salvation should have a more pleasant result. “Sing a new song to the Lord!” says Isaiah (v.10). ”Sing His praises from the ends of the earth!”