The Plumbline

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end. (Seneca) “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland." (Isaiah 43:18-19) When we 'begin' we seldom think of the ending. We imagine it will go one way, but when all is said and done, we really had no idea what we'd encounter along the way. When a beginning must come to an end, it is because something new is about to begin. To some, the idea of 'beginning again' is kind of frightening. The imagination plays out all kinds of scenarios, some grand and others worse than what just ended. God's words to us: "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past." The past is gone - we cannot get it back, nor can we recover any of the moments that are already past. We can look forward, seeing that God is about to do a 'new thing' and trust that...