My husband and I are moving to a new town in Florida in a few weeks. The change is a welcome answer to prayer! It will be a new beginning for us, and we are expecting great things to come of it.
Consequently, I have been thinking a lot about new beginnings. We all have experienced new beginnings in our lives at one point or another. Think of events like starting school, getting married, moving, or getting a new job. Most of us have experienced at least one of those things, and maybe all of them. If we think about those experiences, we can see that new beginnings bring change, which helps us to grow. However, new beginnings can be scary because they involve change. And change means that we must step outside our comfort zone. (And comfort zones are very comfortable – hence the name.) But sometimes being too comfortable can lead to being lazy. And laziness can lead to complacency. And complacency can stunt our growth.
Think about a seed. There is life in that seed. But that life won’t be manifested if the seed never has a new beginning and changes. Even though the seed has life, its real purpose is to grow into something beyond itself. Our lives are similarly designed to grow and change and reach beyond ourselves. If we never change anything in our lives, we will not see all the possibilities that life has in store for us.
I have moved many times in my life. And several of those moves were not my first choice! But I can honestly say that I do not regret any of them because each one brought a new beginning and an opportunity for a change for the better. Each move fostered new friends and wonderful new experiences that I would not have enjoyed otherwise. And I grew as person each time.
I had a Bible teacher who used to say, “Life is an exciting adventure.” I often think of that because life doesn’t always seem like an adventure, let alone an exciting one! But what if we get a chance for a new beginning when life is lackluster? Wouldn’t that bring some excitement into our lives? Change can be energizing.
(A word of caution here, do not confuse a new beginning with running away. A new beginning is a change that we embrace and utilize for our future progress. Running away is usually heading in the wrong direction. And it is often trying to hide from the future.)
A new beginning can be as simple as changing our minds. It doesn’t have to be a physical change. We can stay right where we are, doing just what we’re doing and completely revamp our environment by changing our thinking. But in order to accomplish this, we must have something new or different to put in our minds to be able to change them.
The greatest new beginning of all is getting born again.
2 Corinthians 5:17 – Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
We all received a new beginning when we got born again. The old things that were keeping us in bondage were wiped out. We received a fresh start with a perfectly clean slate because that is what Jesus Christ provided for us. That was God’s plan for the ages, and it was flawlessly carried out by Jesus Christ! And it is available to anyone who believes Romans 10:9 and 10.
When we got born again, ALL things became new for us. Think about it… What was the trajectory of your life before you got born again? If yours was anything like mine, it was a downward free-fall! But God stepped in and offered us a brand-new life with unlimited possibilities in Him. And we took it! After we got born again, our lives began to sky-rocket into the glorious liberty of the sons of God. It was the ultimate new beginning that changed everything for us!
God gave us, His sons and daughters, ALL things – every single thing we need to live a super abundant life in EVERY category of living. He made it available for us to have a real true vital spiritual relationship with Him. We can be more than conquerors in every situation. We can have every need met and all sufficiency in all things! We lack nothing!! With God on our side, every morning can be a new beginning, and every change can have a victorious outcome.
But even though all those things became rightfully ours the moment we got born again, they don’t happen automatically in our lives. We must change our minds to believe God’s spoken words and act accordingly. The Bible calls that, “renewing our minds”. And the Bible further says that when we do renew our minds, we are transformed into a new creature – just like a caterpillar is transformed into a butterfly. Talk about a new beginning!
We all can live a life full of new beginnings because our future is as bright as the promises of God! So, don’t shy away from new beginnings, welcome them. Embrace the changes they present. Enjoy the positive outcomes that God will so generously provide. And you will find that your life truly is an exciting adventure!
Note to my readers: I’m looking forward to the next post to tell you all how our new beginning turned out. Thanks for reading!