Common Sense Reborn

July 22

¹⁸Forget the former things;

do not dwell on the past.

¹⁹See, I am doing a new thing!

Now it springs up; do you perceive it?

I am making a way in the wilderness

and streams in the wasteland.  (Isaiah 43:18, 19)

Happy Thursday friends!  These two verses come from our reading in the Old Testament for today.  They are a beautiful reminder of the truth that God is always at work in our lives.  Verse 19 makes me think of the quote from Kylo Ren in Star Wars:  The Last Jedi, when Kylo tells Rey:

“Let the past die.  Kill it if you have to.  It’s the only way to become who you were meant to be.”

This has been a struggle for me throughout my life.  Even as I witness God making a way in the wilderness of my mistakes, I still can not forget the former things.  I have made some critical missteps in my past, and no matter how much I try to let the past die and not dwell on those mistakes, I keep finding myself slipping into that realm of “what if.”  This is a dangerous thought process because it means I am not fully appreciative of all God has provided for me.  So, as much as I love the verses above, I find that they are a glorious reminder of my own struggles.  But it also shows that one thing still remains true:  none of us are perfect, no not one.  The only perfect person to ever walk this Earth was nailed to a cross about two thousand years ago.

That takes all pressure off us to be perfect.  We are continuous works of art, we’re going to make mistakes, we are going to struggle, but we all have a mighty teacher who is always available to us through prayer and worship.  In the moments you struggle, that’s the best time to turn to Jesus and give your problems to Him.  Lay them at His feet.  Jesus will make a new thing.  He’s doing it now.  I hope you perceive it when the eternal water begins to spring up in your life.

I continue to recommend y’all to listen to the “Jesus and John Wayne” series on The Holy Post Podcast.  Skye Jethani wrapped up his interview with Kristin Kobes Du Mez about the book she recently released.  The Holy Post’s latest episode is another great one to listen to.  You can find that here.

For today’s song-of-the-day, I want to share the new single from Mike Donehey, the former front man of Tenth Avenue North, who continues to bring great sounds in his debuting solo career with “Glory I Couldn’t See.”

Reading plan:  Philippians 2:12-30

Deeper reading plan:  Isaiah 43, 44, 45