It's Time For A Fresh Start
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”
2 Corinthians 5:17
It is New Year’s eve and our family is on a five hour trek from Oklahoma to Arkansas with our dog, Jasper, in tow. He has been at bird dog training for three months and he is ready to come home. We all feel tremendous pressure on our shoulders as we drive. He and his trainers have worked so hard to undo all the bad habits we had formed in him the first nine months of his life. Now it is up to us to continue encouraging the mannerly behavior and the hunting skills they have taught and enforced for three months. Jasper has been taught to not jump up on people, to not run out of the house before he is told, to not bite on your fingers as you pet him, to stand when you are addressing him, to find birds and point the hunter right to them, and to simply be a gentleman. This is our fresh start with Jasper.
This fresh start comes at a perfect time, the new year. Each new year we plan on what we can and will do differently. Maybe we make a resolution to exercise more and eat less, or stay organized in our daily planner, read our Bibles daily, pray daily, spend time with family more, etc. Or some of us focus on one word for the new year. That word will be our mantra throughout the year.
But is that enough to give us a fresh start? A fresh start is more than saying we are going to do something new. It isn’t a matter of doing something more or something less. It isn’t just focusing on a word and saying it to yourself each day. A fresh start requires a cleaning of the slate. A fresh start means jumping in with both feet and committing to a change.
When we commit to a change, we let go of something. So, maybe this year we focus not only on what we are going to add to our lives, but what we are going to let go of so that change can take place. When we let go of the old habits, we make room for the new to come.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” 2 Corinthians 5:17
Through Christ, we are transformed as part of God’s renewal of all creation. As a new creation, we grow into the likeness of Christ. In order to become new creations, we have to let go of the sinful life we lived before. Something always has to be sloughed off so that something new can be formed.
I have several goals for myself in 2022. I have a desire to begin working on a new writing project and spread God’s Word to more people through my social media platform; our family is working on maturing Jasper into the dog we want him to be. When I look at each of these goals, I see that the main thing I need to let go of is spending time doing unimportant things. The time I spend doing mindless activities that do nothing to grow me need to be set aside because they just make me lazy. I need to be intentional with my time. If I’m adding more into my schedule, I either need to take something out or prioritize better.
After we got home with Jasper, things did not turn out the way we expected. It rained his first day home so we couldn’t take him outside, then the next day my husband and I got sick and were not able to work with him for several days. The first 5 days of the new year were spent accomplishing nothing towards my goals. That is not what I had planned, but doesn’t life work that way? If your goals don’t start out the way you anticipated, don’t give up. Take them one day at a time. God’s mercies are new each day and you can always hit the refresh button.
As you look at your goals for the new year, what do you see you need to let go of so that your goals can be fulfilled? Let’s focus on letting go of our old habits so that a fresh start can come.
Digging Deeper:
What fresh start is God calling you to?
What do you need to let go of in order to make room for change?
How can you ask God to help you reach these goals?