I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Reflection
Have you ever been working on a project, when you realized about halfway through that you skipped a crucial step that will most certainly affect the outcome? How easy was it for you to make the decision to start over? Did you begin again? Perhaps you were tempted to quit. Thankfully, in critical moments of my own life when I’ve been tempted to quit, there were people on my path that encouraged me to begin again.
Starting over is difficult – for one thing because we are so conditioned to be concerned about “wasting time.” Some of us won’t even entertain trying something new, unless we are sure it will result in a successful outcome.
But starting over is also hard because beginnings are scary. They remind us of how much we don’t know, how very little control we have, or how many mistakes we made in getting to this point. Sometimes, they are intimidating because they reveal how much we still need to learn.
It takes courage “start over” or begin again. It is a hard thing to step out into the unknown, to let go of what you cannot control, or to forgive yourself, giving yourself permission to try again. That’s why we all need people who can come alongside us to help us see that starting over may not be the worst thing. In fact, sometimes there are even gifts along the way that make you really glad you did.
In Paul’s letter to the Philippians, he begins his correspondence (in a moment of great uncertainty in his own life) with the verse above. He reminds them that that though there is much in this life that they cannot control, he believed wholeheartedly that God would not abandon any of them but continue the good work in them.
Where do you feel discouraged this day and like you want to give up?
Do you know you need to start over again in some way, but you are afraid to try?
Who is an encourager in your life that you can confide in and receive wisdom from?
If no one else – let me be the one to remind you that God is not done with you yet.
And if you find yourself having to start over or begin something new today – try not to fear. Sometimes beginning again is exactly where God does God’s best work.
And perhaps you will find that God has a blessing for you when you do.
by Kate Monahan
For Pondering and Prayer
Starting over requires courage. Who in your life can encourage you and help you move ahead with courage, trusting that God will carry out God’s good work in you?
God – in all our new beginnings,
Give us courage to move forward.
Show us that we are not alone.
Remind us that Your love meets us in every moment of uncertainty.
And never lets us go.
Amen.
