A LIFE OF NEW BEGINNINGS

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Many years ago, before your folks even knew you were

coming, I was reading the works of an outstanding saint

of a past era.  He said,

"The Christian life is a life of new beginnings."

That offended me.  I had been a Christian for years

but then God did a new work in my life.  So it was

watch out world.  Here I come.  The rocket has blasted 
off.   I'm going into orbit and will be communicating 
with you earthlings from my Holy cloud the rest of my life.

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Boy did I have a lot to learn.

The Scriptures say,

"I plead to you therefore, brethren,

by the mercies of God that all of you present your

bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God,

which is your reasonable service."

-Romans 12:1 I LOVE JESUS (UKJV)

And I had.

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But, "living" sacrifices can crawl off the alter.

Not intentionally.  But life hurts.  And when you hurt,

you move, adjust, etc. to lessen the pain.  And eventually

you squirm clear off the alter.

Then you wonder, "What happened?"

Last night I was reading about a great saint of

an earlier generation.

This brother had made a written covenant with God

at a young age.  (I don't have that much courage.) 

And a very few years latter he had to renew that covenant.

In fact, he did at least twice.  But the first time he wrote on it,

"Backslidden.  Restored.  Yet too cold, Lord,

I still wish to continue this.  Pardon the past and strengthen

me for the future, for Jesus' sake. Amen."

This turned me on.  Because he had failed, NO.

But because after his failure he went on to be a great

man of God.  Greatly used and respected.

A life with a new beginning, and another new beginning.

Jesus said,

"If any man will come after me,

let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me."

-Luke 9:23 I LOVE JESUS (UKJV)

 A cross is an instrument of death,

-like a noose,

-the gas chamber,

-a firing squad,

-the guillotine.

In other words,

each new day we are to die to self.

As Paul said,
"I die daily."

"Our God is a God of new beginnings."
-Statement made in Brother Bakht Singh of India
page 205

Lord, you know I did not make it through
this day well.  But if you will grant me another
day, when I wake up I'll pick up my cross.
I'll die to myself, grab you by the hand and
make a new begging again tomorrow.

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