I thought of this verse this morning within the context of “new beginnings”. Breaking bad habits. Starting fresh Letting go of the “stuff” that’s anchoring all of us down.
Then, the first verse of the Bible came to mind.
I have always read with a legalistic formula of laying down a foundation for the entire Bible. God was here at the beginning. He created everything that followed. Both Old Testament and New.
Then I thought about tipping points and change.
I looked past the first verse to put just a little more context to that intro.
“1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ”
How often has the past anchored you to dark things and stuff that you can’t let see the light of day, won’t let see the disinfecting light of the sun? I daresay that applies to all to some degree and some time.
But the moment before the creation of “our” world, it was formless, empty, dark. Yet, God was there hovering with plans for you and me.
And in that moment of light. A moment more than a passing thought. A moment not of just contemplation, but detailed planning for generations, At that very moment, the past was the past, and light opened up everything.
I know well this may sound like psychobabble bull.
But think. If God can make the darkness go away. He can do the same for us. All of us can change.
If we can’t move on past the stuff and not so good things we have done, then we cannot grow. And we all know, we can grow.
As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.”
Do you see what I mean. Change is inevitable. Change is not without a struggle, but we do it. It is in our DNA. You change, you grow. So do/did I/we/us. Same goes for our leaders in this world. We just need to recognize that a leader can shed the words and positions of his candidacy after elected. The responsibilities of leadership encourage growth and maturity, and the words, whether promises or not, are not ties that bind him to any course corrections needed today or in the future. Our leaders owe that to us.
Looking in the rear view mirror on occasion can provide us with lessons on the path we must take, but it will not move us forward on that journey once we know where we must go and begin to move toward that goal.
God bless all of you.
For those who might wonder how I come to these thoughts, let me give you a quick peek. I worked hard for several months to be more active and lose weight. I strived for a new beginning. But this past month, I have stumbled. Stumbled badly, and put off a reboot on dieting and walking. A new beginning was needed. So, I thought about it. I contemplated it. I looked for some guidance in the Bible. And that is what led me to find encouragement to get back into the groove. Here is hoping as I leave this keyboard at zero dark thirty following an hour inside my head. I am on my way to the gym.