Beginning Again
Louisa Tarkington wrote in “The Land of Beginning Again,”
I wish there were some wonderful place
Called the Land of Beginning Again,
Where all our mistakes and all our heartaches,
And all our selfish grief,
Could be dropped like a shabby coat at the door,
And never put on again!
There is Louisa. There is.
The life God gave us is just such a land. Every day that we wake up is just such a day, just such a land.
If we would only recognize it, it can be; if we will only act on it, it will be.
Each morning we wake up we are standing at a doorway in time. We don’t have to put on that shabby coat again. We have a choice. God gave humankind that as a gift in creation.
God has given us many gifts since then. The sun, the rain, the seasons, the day, the night. A time to work, a time to rest. A time to ponder, a time to think.
“As a man thinks in his heart, so is he” we are told in Proverbs 23:7. That passage is a warning to us about how we think, and what we think, and about what we think.
God’s word was written to direct our thoughts. It instructs us in paths of righteousness (Psalm 23:3). It tells us what love is and shows us how loving God is.
It tells us the vast difference between wisdom that is of this earth and the wisdom that comes down from heaven, revealed in the Holy Scriptures.
As we let the thoughts of God sink deep into our consciousness, letting them penetrate our hearts, we can activate them in our lives and so wake each morning in that land of beginning again.
Go to the New Testament and read of God’s Son, Jesus the Christ and stand in awe. He set the example for us. He shows us the way.
The apostle Peter tells us of the mercy of God who through Christ can give us a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus, and an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled – not that shabby old coat – that does not fade away, but is reserved in heaven for those kept by the power of God (1 Peter 1:3-5).
Yes, there is a “Land of Beginning Again!” Will you this year, will you this day, enter the “Land of Beginning Again?” Then it will truly be a Happy New Year. If I can help you in any way, please call on me.