“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
1 Peter 1:3 (NIV)
A biblical example of new beginnings was when Moses made a new set of stone tablets for the Ten Commandments. The old tablets were broken when Moses threw them down, out of frustration with the people, who fell into their old ways, after all the Lord did for them.
Instead of punishing the people, God instructed Moses to make a new set of tablets. This was a tangible sign of God’s mercy, forgiveness and grace for renewal. We leave the broken tablets of our lives behind, as God constantly gives us opportunities for new beginnings.
God always finds a way to rework His original plan for us, by rerouting our souls back to Him. Broken tablets are symbolic of broken dreams, crushed hopes, wrong choices and anything that pulls us away from God, yet, God never walks away from us even when we walk away from Him.
He simply redirects us like a GPS does when we make a wrong turn.
If we miss a turn while driving, a GPS will reroute us, leading us down streets and intersections, all to set us back on the path to our destination. In a similar way, God’s mercy meets us wherever we have lost our way, and leads us back on the path of His will, through a new beginning.
Since last week, my son, Jon, is experiencing a new beginning with regard to facial recognition through family photos. His new attention to people in photos is a small but new area in his recovery process.
When Jon was a child he had a favorite stuffed animal, which was a panda bear, he called “Pandy”.
I ordered a similar one on line and brought it to him, hoping it would trigger more memories. I gave him the stuffed panda, and he smiled. I asked if he remembered “Pandy,” and he nodded yes. Then he spent time looking through more family photos.
One photo that he seemed to like most, is now taped to his closet door. It’s a photo of him with Michael, his twin, at his wedding.
Before leaving for the day, I pointed to that picture, and Jon reached out and took my hand, smiling with tears in his eyes. We hugged each other and then I left.
God has given Jon a new beginning just as He gives every believer new beginnings in our faith walk. As Jon is awakened to photos of his family, our souls are awakened at times to God’s presence working in our lives.
Jesus said that His eye is on the smallest sparrow, and He doesn’t miss a thing. His love and mercy is always looking to re-route our path and draw us closer to Him.
Lord, we leave our broken tablets at the altar of your grace. Thank you for giving us new beginnings, and a constant hope for a fresh start in your name. Amen
