janbeek

It’s a New Day!

Rick Malone wrote
in his “Spiritual Matters” article,

“There is something very special about the dawn.
The sun seems to climb over the horizon
with open arms, inviting us to share
in the wonderful opportunities of a new day.

Every dawn puts the things of yesterday
in the past and allows us to begin afresh.
The Bible uses this imagery of the dawn
to communicate the reality of new beginnings.

The psalmist teaches us that each new day
should be a source of rejoicing,
for it is a “day that the Lord has made;
and we should rejoice and be glad in it”
(Psalms 118:24).

And Jeremiah tells us
that the mercies of the Lord,
“are new every morning”
(Lamentations 3:23).

Michael Buble’ sang of the new day in his song:
“It’s a New Day.”
Listen and discern his idea of a new day.

Then design your own idea of a new day …
and praise the Lord for each new beginning!

Rick Malone went on in his post
to explain his image of a new day:

“This imagery of the dawn
not only symbolizes new beginnings
for us personally,
it symbolizes a new beginning
for the brokenness of God’s creation.
The bliss of the Garden of Eden
crumbled in the hands of Adam.
Creation now groans under a curse.
But we are given the promise
that at the dawning of the age to come
creation itself will be made new.”

You can find Rick Malone’s
full article at this link:
https://boropulse.com/2018/05/spiritual-matters-dawning-new-day/

We have incredible sunrises
above the Madison Range
that I can see from my home.
I love this time of day.
Below is what the sunrise looked like
from my sanctuary window this morning:

I sent this picture to my friend, Lisa, in North Carolina. We exchange sunrise pictures and prayers for one another most mornings. I apologized for the way my roof line from my sanctuary kind of spoiled the view this morning. She wrote back and sent me a cropped picture of my sunrise saying, “Simply GORGEOUS!!!”

Like most things in life, what we behold is often a matter of perspective, right? When we screen out the distractions and zero in on the positives, we see the true beauty around us, within us, and within others.

Lisa lives near a lake. Often her sunrises and sunsets are reflected in the water, creating a double image. I can look at the gray clouds beyond and expect a rainy, dismal day, or I can focus on the colorful reflections in the lake and anticipate a colorful, joy-filled day (or night) ahead.

Rick Malone explained it this way:

“Each new day is the perpetual promise of new beginnings. It is a new opportunity to turn the disappointments of our lives in a new direction. We can all identify with the failures of life—bad decisions, broken relationships, unfortunate circumstances. But God gives us a continual opportunity to start life fresh every day and put the past in our past. He is the God of new beginnings, the God of new life, the God of forgiveness. He is the God who covers our yesterdays with His grace. And, He is the God who graciously covers our tomorrows with every new dawn He gives us. Every sunrise beckons us: ‘Turn your life away from yourself and to your Maker who loves you.’ “

Psalm 118:24

“This is the day which the Lord has made;
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

Above our bed, Bob & I have a painting by Ken Hall. It depicts the sunrise over the Madison Range. On clear mornings, we see this scene out our bedroom, dining room, living room, and sanctuary windows. But, even on fogged in or snowy days when the mountains are hidden and the sun is behind the clouds, we can look at Ken’s painting and thank God for this new day – new dawn – new beginning.

I pray your new day is a blessed one.
I pray you are healthy and happy.
I thank you for your friendship –
and for coming to share your day
with me here on JanBeek.

What are your plans for this new day?
See ya tomorrow (God willing)
God Bless You!

P.S. Please pray for my daughter-in-law, Monika.
She spent most of the day yesterday in the ER.
Today our son, Ty, will take her to the hospital
to find out why the massive headache and the
pain in the area of her gall bladder. Pray for a
clear diagnosis and for healing, please.
Thank you!