In the Beginning, God ...

Do you remember your first day of school? I don't exactly remember it myself, but I do know that my mother told me I clung to her, and did not want to enter the classroom. But once I did, I absolutely loved it. It was a new beginning for me. It meant leaving the safe environment of home, and entering into an exciting world of learning. 

Starting school is one of life's new beginnings.

Prrince Christian
By VisitCopenhagen [CC BY 2.0)
via Wikimedia Commons

And every September, children also get a fresh star when they are promoted to the next grade. They get a new teacher, new classmates, and a chance to start again. Whatever happened last year is gone. And there is a general buzz in the school as the kids re-connect, share about their summers and maybe most importantly, show off their new "school clothes!"

Why do we humans love new beginnings so much? Weddings make us emotional. Babies being born get us so excited. Opening a new building deserves a ceremony. Why do we value "new" so much? 

I think it's because somethig new gives us hope. We muddle along in our lives, messing up, falling down, feeling like things might never get better. But when we experience something new, whether it's for us, sor someone else, we feel hope. We feel like things are not alway going to be the same. And it revives us. It's the cycle of life. It's spring, for us, and it's what makes us feel alive.

Today, I read a couple of Scriptures that referred to beginnings. The first one is the first verse of the Bible: 

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

Genesis 1:1

And this one from the New Testament: 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:1 

And finally, this one from Proverbs: 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. 

Proverbs 1:7a

These verse all tell us that the beginning of everything is God. He created everything. Without Him, we have nothing, and we literally are nothing. And without fearing (respecting) him, we know nothing. 

So, I know I need to be reminded that ultimately, all my hope comes from God. My knowledge ultimately comes from him. And my very existence comes from him. He is the new beginning, and very time we draw near to Him, our hearts can have hope. In fact, His grace makes every day a new beginning: 

His mercies are new every morning. 

Praise you, God!