Daily Thots: Let the People Renew Their Strength

This verse from Isa 41:1 is appropriate for us as we embark on a brand new year. A new beginning is always full of excitement and uncertainties. Apart from a new year each year, think about many other new beginnings you may have gone through:

• as a child going into school for the first time, and then going into secondary school, junior college and tertiary institutions
• as an adult working for the very first time, and then changing jobs over the years
• falling in (and out) of love
• getting married
• becoming parents
• moving into a new home
• entering into retirement (the list goes on...)

How have you felt before each new beginning? Were there butterflies (or sparrows) in your stomach? Was it pure joy, or coupled with much uncertainties?

A new beginning represents change, and change requires some amount of courage and strength (at least to boot). Renewing our strength is a basic preparation, like warm-up stretching one does before running. Attempting to embrace change without any form of preparation can lead to disillusionment at best and denial at worst when the excitement fades and the uncertainties rise (think back and you will see this applies most of the time).

Like what Charles Spurgeon says in his daily devotions Morning & Evening for today, "even the trees which do not wear themselves with care, or shorten their lives with labour, must drink of the rain of heaven and suck from the hidden treasures of the soil". How much more, we, a dynamic breed of God's creation, created in His image, capable of all manner of hustle & bustle, ought to be strengthed from time to time by God Himself?

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Take time to rest in the Lord, and be renewed daily for yet another exciting year of journeying with Jesus Christ our Lord.

God bless you.

Category: cf_tht