Begin Again - Adam and Eve
One of the experiences we all likely share from our childhood is the moment we know we have done something wrong adn are going to be in trouble. When I was about 10 years old, I can remember clearly just such an incident. My friend Kim had come over to and we were goofing off upstairs in my room. Okay, so really we were mostly trying to hide from my little sister who we had decided was not cool enough to hang out with us on this particular day. My sister had, once again,
Begin Again - Noah
“Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters came on the earth.” ~ Genesis 7:6 When a natural disaster strikes, it’s hard not to watch the news coverage. Hurricanes, tornado, earthquakes, wildfires, tsunamis, floods. They are humbling reminders of the power of nature. Often with very little warning, people flee from their homes with little more than what they can carry or cram into a car. They are forced to leave the rest of their lives behind knowing there is a s
Begin Again - Job
“ ‘Does Job fear God for nothing?’ Satan replied. ‘Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.’ The Lord said to Satan, ‘Very well, then, everything he has is in your hands, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.’ ” Job 1:9-12 I don’t kno
Begin Again - Ruth
"May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge." Ruth 2:12 A few years ago, I found myself living in Scotland while I worked on a Master’s degree in Scripture and Theology. It was a dream come true. A dream which created a whirl wind of preparations to move overseas. By the time I arrived, I was exhausted and had just one day to get settled and find my way around my
Begin Again - Joseph
“And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.” ~Genesis 45:5 Logically, I know that I have not suffered very much at all at the hands of others. I have never been physically tortured or abused. I have never feared for my life. Emotionally is a different story. It is often too tempting and too easy to take the small injustices I have suffered and hold myself up as a great
Begin Again - Introduction
A new year has arrived which begs the question: What are you looking forward to in the year ahead? What did you value most in the year just completed? Are you excited for new possibilities in the new year, or dreading having to start over in some area of life once again? The start of a new year is a natural time to do a bit of self-evaluation. For some of us, that opens up exciting new possibilities. For others, we attempt to prepared ourselves for trials we know we will
