New Dawn: Facing Fear 365Sample

At the dawn of a new chapter, we can be tempted to look back on seasons of hardship and difficulty and think, what was the point? In hindsight, we can perceive the relationship struggles we’ve endured, the failed businesses, the unfulfilled dreams, or time spent in wilderness seasons, as wasted time.

We can fear that we now carry too much baggage to be free to forge a new path or have too many skeletons in our closet to start anew. The truth is, nothing is wasted with God. Every moment of our past – the dead-end roads, the rejections, and the triumphs – has led us to where we are now, and everything, no matter how destructive or painful, can lead us deeper into God’s perfect plan for us and all creation.

What I’ve found, during the short stay I’ve had on this planet so far, is that time and healing have given me perspective and allowed me to be thankful for the things that broke me. That’s because on the other side of that breaking was new life, transformation, the birth of a deeper understanding of love and of sacrifice, and inevitably joy.

Right now, trapped in time and space, in your room, on the train, perhaps you can’t see where this moment or journey is going, but today, let us encourage you to trust that God is leading you there. Everything can be redeemed, and nothing is wasted.

Take a moment this morning wherever you are in your work week, family morning, commute or day off, to consider the journey God has led you through so far. What are some of the challenges and fears that you have either been reckoning with or worked through? Where has God led in these moments? Have you been able to hand these anxieties over to Him, or are you in need of letting go and letting God? Today is a new dawn to work through these emotions, these moments and these challenges. He is with us not just to walk alongside us in our worries but to carry us through and shape us more like Jesus who stands in the storm with peace.