Meditate on your opportunity to start
fresh.
Celebrate the Festival of Trumpets each year
on the first day of the appointed month in early autumn. You must call an
official day for holy assembly, and you may do no ordinary work. Numbers
29:1
I always feel like I get a fresh start at
the beginning of the New Year…but that is in January. Then I get to start over
again on my birthday…which just happened a couple of days ago. The Jewish
community celebrates the Jewish New Year, also known as the Feast of Trumpets
or Rosh Hashanah, at the beginning of their month of Tishri—our mid-September.
That is yet another time to start fresh, especially since it is followed by Yom
Kippur, or the Day of Atonement, where rather than repent they ask God to give
them a clean slate—to begin the year with their sins wiped away. No work is
allowed on that day.
I like the idea of starting over. God gives
us that opportunity every day as we confess our sins to Him and He forgives us.
Just as David wrote in Psalms.
Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is
forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Yes, what joy for those whose record
the LORD has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty! When
I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long.
Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated
like water in the summer heat. Interlude Finally, I confessed all my sins to
you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, "I will confess
my rebellion to the LORD." And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone. Therefore,
let all the godly pray to you while there is still time, that they may not
drown in the floodwaters of judgment. Psalm 32:1-6
The record is cleared of guilt…a clean
slate. Starting over fresh does give me joy. Don’t wait until a new year is
starting…or even until your birthday. Start fresh today. Make things right with
the Lord…and with others that you can be filled with joy…with a satisfaction
that God loves you and He will forgive your sins…your mistakes…your bad attitude
or even the trivial stuff you’ve been carrying around for years that just
weighs you down. Let go of it. Let God care for you. Find joy in your heart…even
if there doesn’t seem to be much joy in the situation our world is in today.
Start fresh…and share with others the reason you find joy.
Prayer
~ Lord, You are my hiding place; you protect me from trouble. You surround me
with songs of victory. You have said, "I will guide you along the best
pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you. Do not be like a
senseless horse or mule that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under
control." Many sorrows come to the wicked, but unfailing love surrounds
those who trust You, LORD. So I rejoice in You, LORD, and am glad, like all those
who obey You! I shout for joy, along with all whose hearts are pure! From Psalm
32:7-11
Verse
of Salvation ~ …there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents
and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven't
strayed away! Luke 15:7
Repent. Return to the Lord. Rejoice -
experience joy in your heart. There will be joy in heaven!
©
2020 Text, photos and paintings by
Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved.
Unless
otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation,
copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of
Tyndale House
Publishers, Inc. Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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