Happy New Year, everyone, and welcome to 2018! Today’s topic brings the song,
“Goin’ Back to Alabama” by Kenny Rogers, to my mind, especially that part that
says;
“You know a man who
walks by the side of the road
Can turn himself around.
He can pick himself up;
And dust himself off;
And start all over again”.
Starting over again is part of our lives. As a believer who
trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ, you will have reasons to start over, from time
to time. Why? Because you are a human being! As human beings, we fall over and
fail; we crush and maim; we blow it and sin and we rebel against God.
It’s
a well known fact that at the beginning of the year, many people attempt to start
life all over again. Unfortunately, for most of them, at the end of the whole year, they find themselves right where they were. If you have been trying
to start over but have not been successful, chances are high that you’ve been
repeating the mistakes you’ve been making all along.
The Book of Nehemiah tells us the story of Nehemiah as a
personal private journal. It tells us about devastation and then paints us a
picture of hope, not despair; and renewal and of starting and rebuilding. The
entire city of Jerusalem was torn down because God punished the sin of His
people through exile and destruction. Those who returned were living in rubble,
unsafe and unhappy.
Do
you ever feel that way, sometimes? Do you ever look around you and get the
sense that other people; that their lives, families, hopes and future, maybe
their jobs, schooling, business, spiritual and emotional lives, are in tatters? That was how Nehemiah felt. But rather that surrender
to despondency and/or denial (which is the mistake we make) over the desolate
city of Jerusalem, he grieved, fasted and wept and cried to God. And then,
Nehemiah starts to believe and hear from God about starting over. By the end of Chapter 2, Nehemiah affirms
thus: “The God of heaven will help us succeed. We, his servants, will start
rebuilding this wall”.
Another
character who embraced the opportunity to start his life all over is Jacob (Genesis
25-33). A lot of
things had gone wrong in the life of Jacob;
1. The
quest for wealth and power.
In Genesis 25:26-34, Jacob, in return for a plate of food, asked for
his brother’s birthright. The rights and privileges of the firstborn have been
historically and culturally revered. Firstborns are groomed as heir to the
family’s wealth and fortune, and exude a lot of power and authority. Let us
agree that Esau was unwise and careless but Jacob took advantage of his older
brother’s weakness and went for the ‘kill’ as a result of his covetousness.
2. A deceiver and a fugitive.
As if
acquiring his brother's 'elder' position wasn’t bad enough, Jacob went further to steal Esau’s blessing from their
father, Isaac, on his death bed. This was probably the last straw for Esau, who
developed pure hatred for his brother, Jacob, causing Jacob to flee from Esau’s
threat to kill him (Genesis 27:41-42).
The meaning of the name, Jacob means
deceiver; very fitting for a man who had deprived his brother of his numero uno
status and usurped his blessing in a deceptive manner. By Genesis 32, Jacob had had enough of the ‘hide and seek’ game with
his brother. He was now a very wealthy and powerful man but emotionally, he was
a ‘basket-case’. He reached out to reconcile with his brother, Esau, but he was
still apprehensive (Genesis 32:3-21).
3. Divine intervention.
Jacob
knew he couldn’t repair his past alone; neither could he start his life all
over until he confronted his past and was done with it. He had tried to connect
with his brother through emissaries, and through gifts but his fear remained.
In Genesis 32:22-32, Jacob sought
divine intervention. He got loads of solutions. First, he got a name change.
His name was amended from ‘Deceiver’ to Israel, meaning ‘triumphant with God’. For Jacob, a
changed name meant a changed man. It was the same way with ex-Saul becoming
Paul. Secondly, Jacob received divine blessing.
Starting over
The New Year provides another
opportunity to start over again. We need to prayerfully get rid/let go of those
things that have not augured well for us - bad habits, addictions, poor
relationship management, indiscipline, unseriousness, etc, and embrace a character
change through the work of the Holy Spirit. It is not a pleasant experience and
it takes time but we must be ready to obey and hold fast to God during the
process.
Starting over may require a confrontation with
your past. This could be very painful and fearful and your
current status in life or other things may not be enough to cover it up. When
you seek biblical counseling to deal with your past, you just may find the key
to killing the problem forever.
One thing is certain; our God is a God of second chances and
fresh starts. Things do not need to get worse before you retrace your steps and
start all over again. No matter how horrible the situation seems, it cannot be
beyond the intervention of and redemption by our Lord. Remember, “With God, nothing shall be
impossible” (Luke 1:37).
Philippians 1:6, “There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the
God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a
flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears” (MSG).
References
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