NEW BEGININGS
Start the season of Lent with a determination to be open to new experiences, memories and blessings, having an open mind and heart to wherever the Lord may take you, with full assurance and confidence that He is with you. “Remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)
NEW POSSIBILITES
There is no limit to what God can do in your life; nothing is impossible with God. He opens doors that no man can shut and closes doors that no man can open. With God the possibilities are endless when we live according to his will. “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13)
NEW PLANS
Pray about what God has planned for you in the coming weeks and be willing to walk by faith in obedience as you follow His leading. Remember that His plans are always for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. “For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)
NEW PURPOSE
God always has a purpose for what you will experience. He has a reason for what He allows in your life, and through it you can trust Him completely. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)
NEW PROVISIONS
The Bible says not to worry about tomorrow for tomorrow has enough worries of its own. Trust in your Heavenly Father who knows everything you need, who is your God and your Provider. He is faithful and He will do it. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?” (Matthew 6:25-27)
NEW GROWTH
When we are willing to let go and let God work in and through us, He will always stretch us and help us to grow. Continue to grow in His Word and your relationship with Him. Pray for God to mould you and make you pliable in the Potter’s hand. Then watch the Master Craftsman work on His masterpiece – you! “O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8)
NEW WISDOM
With new experiences and lessons come new wisdom and insight. Make it a priority to seek out wisdom as a hidden treasure or as fine gold. Proverbs says that wisdom will set a garland of grace on your head and she will present you with a crown of splendour. “I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power for us who believe, according to the working of His great power.” (Ephesians 1: 17-19)
“Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-14
RENEWED PEACE
When you are challenged by new experiences and new adventures, good or bad, I encourage you to keep your eyes fixed on Christ. He will give you rest and peace because He is our peace and He loves you and cares for you deeply. “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)
Let us give thanks to the Lord as we look forward to what He has in store for us over the coming season of Lent. He is faithful and worthy to be praised!
Written by Neha Sebastian