New
Revelation 21:5 (New Living Translation)
5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.”
There is something wonderful about new things.
I remember new shoes as a child--that wonderful smell of new shoe leather--the click-clack of new leather soles on the red tile floor of our kitchen--the sheer joy of the time Mum let me have the impractical pair of shiny black patent shoes, so different to the sensible sandals always bought a little big so that I could grow into them. Whatever kind the new shoes were, I used to put them beside my bed at night, in their box with the soft tissue paper, so that they'd be right there in the morning!
Other new things that I love--the impossible delicate softness and sweet smell of new babies; the bright green of tiny, perfect, new leaves; a new journal--never written in--full of possibility--new words to write.
God makes things new--I know it because his Word says so and I know it by experience.
My friends, family and I are learning new and better ways of relating to one another--learning new patterns. We may slip, bump up against eachother and scrape the occasional knee, but just as in learning to ride a bike, or to play a sport that requires the development of some skill and coordination--the bruises along the way are so worth it--so very worth it. The prize is deep intimate and abiding relationships with eachother.
Another kind of new is the new life that begins when a soul encounters its Maker and yields Lordship to him.
Ask what difference Christ has made in a person's life and it can be a very emotional moment. I can't count the number of people who have told me that they wouldn't be here if they hadn't found Christ--they, or self destructive lifestyles would have ended their lives.
Tonight at cell group someone gave us a glimpse into their life B.C.--before Christ. His defining moment came at a New Year's Eve party two and a half years ago. It was a rock bottom moment, sitting on a floor, leaning against a wall after a night of of hard drinking and heavy drug taking. Someone stood in front of him and asked him if he wanted a line. He said that by that point he should have been dead, he'd taken so many drugs that night and had so much to drink. He saw the devil in the person in front of him offering him more and he said no. He got to his feet and wandered around the house he was in. Everywhere he saw people wasted on drugs and among them he could see demons. He made up his mind he was going to change his life--and with God's help--he has.
Thank God that he is a maker of new things--new lives, new patterns, new beginnings.
He makes all things new.
Psalm 66:10, 12 (New Living Translation)
10 You have tested us, O God;
you have purified us like silver...
12 We went through fire and flood,
but you brought us to a place of great abundance.
Ezekiel 36:26 (New Living Translation)
26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.
5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.”
There is something wonderful about new things.
I remember new shoes as a child--that wonderful smell of new shoe leather--the click-clack of new leather soles on the red tile floor of our kitchen--the sheer joy of the time Mum let me have the impractical pair of shiny black patent shoes, so different to the sensible sandals always bought a little big so that I could grow into them. Whatever kind the new shoes were, I used to put them beside my bed at night, in their box with the soft tissue paper, so that they'd be right there in the morning!
Other new things that I love--the impossible delicate softness and sweet smell of new babies; the bright green of tiny, perfect, new leaves; a new journal--never written in--full of possibility--new words to write.
God makes things new--I know it because his Word says so and I know it by experience.
My friends, family and I are learning new and better ways of relating to one another--learning new patterns. We may slip, bump up against eachother and scrape the occasional knee, but just as in learning to ride a bike, or to play a sport that requires the development of some skill and coordination--the bruises along the way are so worth it--so very worth it. The prize is deep intimate and abiding relationships with eachother.
Another kind of new is the new life that begins when a soul encounters its Maker and yields Lordship to him.
Ask what difference Christ has made in a person's life and it can be a very emotional moment. I can't count the number of people who have told me that they wouldn't be here if they hadn't found Christ--they, or self destructive lifestyles would have ended their lives.
Tonight at cell group someone gave us a glimpse into their life B.C.--before Christ. His defining moment came at a New Year's Eve party two and a half years ago. It was a rock bottom moment, sitting on a floor, leaning against a wall after a night of of hard drinking and heavy drug taking. Someone stood in front of him and asked him if he wanted a line. He said that by that point he should have been dead, he'd taken so many drugs that night and had so much to drink. He saw the devil in the person in front of him offering him more and he said no. He got to his feet and wandered around the house he was in. Everywhere he saw people wasted on drugs and among them he could see demons. He made up his mind he was going to change his life--and with God's help--he has.
Thank God that he is a maker of new things--new lives, new patterns, new beginnings.
He makes all things new.
Psalm 66:10, 12 (New Living Translation)
10 You have tested us, O God;
you have purified us like silver...
12 We went through fire and flood,
but you brought us to a place of great abundance.
Ezekiel 36:26 (New Living Translation)
26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.
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