Showing posts with label renewal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label renewal. Show all posts

Saturday, October 2, 2021

Start Fresh

2 Corinthians 4:16-18
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Sometimes we need to think like a relief pitcher.

We watch a lot of baseball at our house. Tim works as an usher for the Cincinnati Reds. Two of our grandsons play (and a granddaughter plays softball,) and when the Reds are away, we watch their games on television. We root for the starting pitcher to get the game going, then for the relief pitchers who, we hope, finish the game well. In baseball, the relief pitcher enters the game after the starting pitcher has a high pitch count, or has become ineffective. Games often employ more than one reliever. Those guys do their best, but in the games where they just can't get the other team out, they are relieved by another reliever. Here's the thing, the relief pitcher can't let themselves get stuck if their performance fails to meet the needs of the team. Instead, they have to shake it off and keep their bad day from spilling into the next game.

Think like a relief pitcher. Each day gives me a new opportunity to start again. Just because the previous day stunk, doesn't mean today has to follow suit. We all have those times we'd just as soon forget or at the least, push behind us. I thank God He's the God of second chances. He urges me to repent from sin and start again. He renews my spirit every day. He encourages me to not lose heart.

I can imagine how a relief pitcher feels when they fail to live up to their potential. I've been there. I get discouraged when I fail. But each day is a brand-new opportunity to renew my faith and seek my Father in heaven. Earthly troubles are just thatearthly. God gives us hope through Jesus and help through the Holy Spirit.

Start fresh each day with Jesus.

Friday, April 17, 2015

Surprises of Spring

Matthew 27: 50;54-56
And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs.
©Penny Frost McGinnis
Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

Each day of spring holds a different surprise. In March the daffodils wave in the breeze and the hyacinths send their sweet smell into the air. Then April bursts with yellow forsythia and bright tulip trees. On my way to work this week, I noticed the redbud trees in bloom. Their lovely pinkish-red buds contrast with the fresh green leaves of the maple and oaks. Up the street a weeping cherry's petals hang like a pink cloud. In the thicket the dogwood's white petals spread. God created beautiful blossoms for the season.

As I've enjoyed the colors of spring, I couldn't help but think of Jesus. As pretty as the redbuds are, the dark red color beneath the pink reminds me of the blood Jesus shed. The dogwood with the four leaves, two longer and two shorter, resemble a cross with indents said to look like scars. An old legend taught that the dogwood was meant to be a reminder of the crucifixion. And the weeping cherry made me think of Mary who cried for her son. Spring is a time of revival and renewal of life. Jesus gives life everlasting. Praise God for new life!