“You will not be left or abandoned. God will not be disgusted with you. Ever. In that way, God is not like the people in your life. God doesn’t tire of your struggle and your back-and-forth and your uncertainty. God doesn’t grow weary of your winding path.” – Begin Again
Well May has been an interesting month so far. Actually, 2018 has been filled with all kinds of surprises, and I feel thankful that I got through April in one piece. Within one week, my husband and two of our dogs each had surgery. They are all recovered and doing beautifully, but I was just about ready to collapse at the end of that week!
Thankfully, I ended up with just the right book at just the right time, Begin Again by Leeana Tankersley.
Begin Again is a Christian devotional that is all about, you guessed it, beginning again in your relationship and walk with God. I loved this devotional, and it came at just the right time for me. Funny how that always seems to happen, isn’t it? 😉
In Begin Again, Ms. Tankersley shares stories from her walk with God that all believers can relate to. How many of us feel that we have too much baggage to start fresh in our relationship with God? How often do we remind ourselves of all of our past failures and rebellions rather than allowing ourselves to accept God’s forgiveness? How many times have we promised ourselves that THIS is it … this time, we’re going to walk faithfully and always turn to God and life is going to be one positive, faithful walk with the Lord from here on out. All believers have been there. And all believers find themselves inevitably failing again and starting over again. Because we’re all just human. The good news is, as Ms. Tankersley so beautifully shares in her book:
“God will use our brokenness. He will come to us when we are hiding and scared. We don’t have to be ‘fixed-up’ for God. He will come to us.”
Ms. Tankersley meets readers right in the trenches of life – stripping away the Instagram filter that we all seem addicted to, hoping to make it seem like we’ve got it all figured out when really we’re feeling lost and clueless. This struck a real chord with me as I’ve most definitely been feeling overwhelmed and stressed with this new diagnosis. I wanted to shout “Eureka!” when I read this little gem:
“Transformation is not when something new begins but when something old falls apart.”
Beginning again really means beginning again and again and again. Because we’re human and we make mistakes and we wander and stray and get lost and confused. But just when things seem like they’re falling apart, transformation is available with a chance to start fresh…again and again and as many times as we need it.
Begin Again is divided into four parts and each part has five or six chapters. It could easily be read as a chapter-a-day devotional or used for discussion in a small group. If you enjoy devotionals and would like to read about ways to forgive yourself, love yourself, and walk forward with God, then give Begin Again a chance. It is available now!
I received a free review copy of this book from Baker Publishing Group. All opinions are my own.
Kaitlin Scirri