Tough times can mean new beginnings

Good morning, everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Just keep dancing”

Our Bible verse for today: “Look, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:19 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Tough times can mean new beginnings”

Although I write a daily devotional message every day, in my personal time with the Lord I also use daily devotionals written by others. Right now, I am using one called “Soul Fuel” by a man with the name Bear Grylls. Bear is a man’s man. A tough guy. As a young man he was a member of the British Special Forces. He was also one of the youngest climbers to ever scale Mount Everest. He once crossed the Arctic Ocean in an inflatable boat. For seven years he was the host of the Discovery Channel’s show “Man vs Wild” and then another called “Running Wild with Bear Grylls”.

But Bear’s life of adventure almost never happened. While serving in the British Special Forces, he had an accident that almost killed him. He survived, but he broke his back and the accident ended his service in Special Forces. He was in the hospital and in rehab for many months. Afterwards, he was physically weak, in pain, hobbling, and depressed. He felt that the entire trajectory of his life had been altered. Since childhood his father had taught him how to climb mountains and from those earliest of years, he had a dream of one day climbing Mount Everest. But now that dream appeared to be gone.

He wrote, “In those dark nights of the soul in that rehabilitation center, it was the dream of one day getting strong enough again to attempt to climb Everest that drove me on. It became the whole focus of my recovery. Do or die. If I could make it, I would become one of the youngest climbers ever to reach the summit, but the real reason I wanted to attempt it was the feeling that life had given me a precious second chance, and I needed to make use of that.”

As bad as his accident was, and as serious as his injuries were, he wasn’t dead and he wasn’t paralyzed. So, he had something to work with, he had a starting place. But more important, he had strong faith in God. He knew that the Lord wasn’t done with him yet and that even in those tragic circumstances, God was doing something new. “Everything ahead of me was a gift – now what was I going to do with it? With a sense that nothing was impossible, I felt a tiny tingle returning inside of my spirit. God works through the storms of our lives, and tough times so often mean fresh beginnings.”

Bear recovered. He climbed Everest; he had numerous other adventures; he wrote books; he became a television star; he spoke at numerous conferences to inspire other Christians to trust God and to keep going no matter what; and he wrote a great devotional book which I am currently being blessed by.

I don’t know what your circumstances are, but I do know that God is the God of miracles and second chances. Perhaps He is about to do a new thing in your life too.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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