TODAY’S SIGNATURE VERSE ••• Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)
PRAISE & PRAYER PROMPT ••• I cannot believe it’s the middle of June and I had to wear a light sweater yesterday. It was a miserable, cold, rainy day that completely failed to live up to the normal expectations of late spring. It’s almost like the weather doesn’t want to be left out and so it feels a need to contribute to all the other 2020 curveballs of the year. Today’s temperatures are expected to be cold too, so I’ll be digging out a sweater again. Probably my favorite one.
If you just heard a weird noise, don’t worry… that means my Mom just read this and is groaning. She hates my favorite sweater and if she could get her hands on it, she’d go after it with the vengeful enthusiasm of a mob boss. I am pretty sure she’d love to see my sweater attached to a concrete block so she could watch it sink in the nearest lake.
It’s her fault though. She bought it for me when we were in New York City for my 18th birthday. Twenty-seven years later, I admit it’s a tiny, little bit worn. Despite the teasing I get over it, it’s not going anywhere. (Never!) Mom is mortified by it and begs me not to wear it in public… and usually, I don’t unless it’s just to run a quick errand. But I love this sweater and the one good thing about this unseasonably cold weather is that it gives me a reason to wear it.
Just as my sweater is seen with disdain and all its flaws, we sometimes see people the same way. We see their rips, tears, and damage and think they are beyond saving. We assume there is no hope for them, and we give up. We don’t want to invest our time in what we consider to be a lost cause. Maybe we even think these things about ourselves.
Thankfully, we have Jesus who looks beyond the damage, hurt, bad choices, and past to see our hearts. To see how He can redeem us. How He can patch up the damaged holes of our past and make us new again. Let’s look at 2 Corinthians 5:17, which says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
It’s a promise that gives us hope. God can do new things, even bring forth a river in the desert (Isaiah 43:19)! He can bring beauty from ashes (Isaiah 61:3)! He can make all things beautiful (Ecclesiastes 3:11)! He can make all things good (Romans 8:28)! He can look in the heart of a dying, repentant thief and offer forgiveness (Luke 23:39-43).
If Jesus can do all that, how can we ever write someone off as hopeless? How can we ever think we ourselves are beyond His mercies?
Friends, He can do anything. Even take the hardest heart and write faith on it. Never stop hoping, believing, and praying. No one is beyond His ability to restore and redeem.
Today, as you pray, thank God that He sees the potential beyond our flaws. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see others with the eyes of Jesus. Ask Him to help you understand that no one is beyond the reach of Jesus’s salvation, nor is anyone beyond His ability to make new.
SHARING ••• Please share with others! Visit www.MyGraceFullLife.com to read past blogs. ***Unless noted otherwise, all Scripture references are from the ESV translation.
One Response
I love stories of redemption! For example, how Son of Sam killer, David Berkowitz accepted Jesus in prison. Or how Chuck Colson was born again and spent the rest of his life in prison ministry. Thanks for the reminder of the power and saving grace of our Lord.