Fresh start
A very Happy New Year to you! I do hope you had a good Christmas whatever you were up to. We had a very chilled time, which was lovely. I was so relaxed I lost track of what day it was and went to put the bins out only to be told it was the wrong day!
The start of a new year is often a time when people make some New Year’s resolutions? I know of one person re-joining the gym and another signing up for the Great North Run. Have you made any pledges for 2022?
For us, new year means a new calendar. We have one of those ‘family organisers’ which is the go-to place to know who should be where, when and doing what! However, when we buy it, it’s completely blank and we fill in the details for the year ahead. We begin again!
A new year is a fresh start, and I do like the idea of that. I recently got a new phone and when I tried to sync with iTunes there was a problem. So, I had to and recreate my playlists.
It was a pain at first, but when I was rebuilding them, I added in new music and left some other tracks off – now it’s a joy to listen and discover some different tunes.
A fresh start is one of the big themes in the Bible...
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here!”
What this short verse says is that Jesus (Christ) offers to everyone something new! The new replaces the old, it’s a fresh start.
So how do we get this new life? First, we need to acknowledge that there is a God who wants to be in a living relationship with us. Secondly, we need to confess that we have messed up, that we need Him and only He can ‘wipe the slate clean’.
In other words, we confess our shortcomings and need of Him and then accept His love and forgiveness. The Bible calls this being ‘born again’, which I think is the ultimate fresh start!
This was something I did many years ago and was a great decision. Yes, I still mess up, make mistakes, and get things wrong. But I have found that by asking for God’s forgiveness when I fail, means that fresh start begins again.
If you look back over 2021 and can only see your failures and regrets then 2022 could be your opportunity for a fresh start. Not a ‘New Year Resolution’ but a ‘New Year Revolution’!
If you want to know more about this, please join us on the Alpha Course we start next week on Zoom. Alpha is an opportunity to explore life and the Christian faith in a friendly, open and informal environment, all from the comfort of your own home!
Find out more about Alpha here
God bless
Gary Bastin - Hope Community Church leader