Interior of Saint Peter’s Basilica, Rome, Italy, 2011, taken by Martha Wiggins
“From His fullness we have received, grace upon grace.” John 1:16
No one sets out to fail. We would would never begin if we knew we were doomed from the start. We begin our endeavors with a good attitude and a hopeful heart, believing in, or at least wishing for, a successful outcome.
Sometimes in the process we stumble. When we do, it is usually ourselves we trip over. We become our own obstacle to success. We lose strength or courage to go on. We lose willpower or faith. We falter because we don’t know how to proceed after we trip.
In His wisdom, grace, and infinite mercy, God has devised a plan to rescue us from ourselves, from our failures. He offers us hope and guidance, and more importantly for most of us, another chance; a do-over. He forgives and forgets.
When we bring our failures and lay them at His feet, at the foot of the Cross, Jesus takes them on Himself. He wipes the slate clean with His Blood and tears. He then sends us out with enough grace to begin again, and again, for as many times as needed. We wonder, “How can this be? Why doesn’t He give up on us? Why doesn’t He just walk away from us forever?” The answer is simple; He loves us with an everlasting Love.
We are His children. He has vested a part of Himself in each one of us. When we know this Truth, when we believe it within our heart, we are free to begin. We are free to falter; we are free to fail. Most importantly we are free to begin again, and again, and even again! With His grace He picks us up, dusts us off, and sets us on the path again. With Him there is success. With Him we are not doomed to fail. We may falter, but we will succeed.
At the start of each New Year we look forward with hope in our hearts. It is a time when we venture forth, sometimes on a wing and a prayer, sometimes with a goal and a well laid plan. We seek success. As this New Year blossoms in full, remember to seek His grace, believe in success, and get started! If need be, start again. Jesus is with you.
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