That little semi-circle in the corner of the address box on your computer is a very valuable tool. I'm sure you have been in the same boat as I have been many times. I have looked up a website or address online and then something happens. The phone rings, the children scream, the dryer buzzer goes off, etc. and the next thing you know it has been several hours since you first were working on that site. The refresh button gives us the quick and easy way to reload that site with fresh new content to be as up-to-date as possible.
Some days in this journey of life I wish I had a "refresh" button for the stressors of this daily grind. The opportunity to start over with fresh new data and information to face the trials that come our way would be a refreshing experience. And then we read from an obscure place these words of truth,
"Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord's faithful love we do not perish, for His mercies never end. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness! I say: The Lord is my portion, therefore I will put my hope in Him. The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him. It is good to wait quietly for deliverance from the Lord."-Lamentations 3:21-26
What an amazing thought! When all seems to be lost or crashing in and all we can think about is the end is near, the Lord reminds us to hold on, wait on Him. Wait...that wonderful Hebrew word qavah' (remember Isa. 40:30-31) once again draws us to the place of faith and trust. The overwhelming days of this journey will give way to the fresh new day of His mercies being renewed and poured out over us again and again as we purposefully and intentionally wait in Him.
So, as this new year begins and the journey continues with a new calendar to plan and organize, take some time to REFRESH your commitment to Him and His purposes. He has worked in your life as well as my life this year to show Himself faithful. The rough days we have are safe in His hands even when we feel overwhelmed because we know the morning is coming. Just as the passage in Lamentations shares with us, His mercies are new with the dawning of a new day. The new year offers us all an opportunity to REFRESH our lives and our commitments to Him through receiving His new mercies and allowing His faith to grow in us as we listen to the Holy Spirit teach us His ways and His purposes.
Click that REFRESH button and begin a new day with Him. Start this year off with a fresh desire for His faithfulness to motivate faith in us to grow. Begin this new calendar year with a commitment to follow obediently and with passion His will for your life. Step out of the boat and go with God where He wants to take you in your daily journey, in your relationships with others and with Him into the fields of harvest all around you. This year REFRESH that commitment to reach the world and teach the Word by offering up to Him your time, your resources and your abilities. Join Him today as He guides your steps into His will and His purposes for your life...trust His heart and follow His hand!
In His Grip,
JT
