New Beginnings

     I revel in fall, everything about the season.  This weekend Christy and I scattered fall decorations around the house; harbingers of beauty and riches to come. I derive great pleasure from watching football, even the preseason. When we lived in more northern climes the smell of burning leaves and frost drifted through the woods and parks where I walked, while soaking up rich hues of yellow, rust, bright red and orange. As a youth I looked forward to the annual unpacking of sweaters and other winter wear.  Even today the smell of moth-balls generates warm memories of my mother getting things ready for colder weather that drift through my mind like so much smoke. I also enjoyed the start of school, and still do.

     Last week school started for us. All my students poured into class filled with anticipation of things to come. I’m privileged to teach seventh, eighth, ninth, and eleventh grades. I love all my kids, but the seventh graders bring a special joy with them as they pour into my room. For the first time they will change teachers every period as they’re big kids now. This is a special time for them filled with many new beginnings and challenges; just like my favorite football teams.

     Every fall we start the new season filled with surety and hope. We’re sure that the new additions to the team our will make us the best in the league and hope that everyone stays healthy.  Preseason games provide opportunities for new arrivals to showcase their skills in hopes of earning a slot on the final roster, perhaps even a starting position. These men play with intensity, knowing that coaches scrutinize everything they do and that their future in the NFL hangs in the balance. Each fall brings great hope, even for the Cowboys.

     I know that we generally consider spring the time of new beginnings, but I always thing of fall as the time of new beginnings. I love new beginnings. School generates a cascade of new beginnings. Which of my students will blossom this year? Which ones will seize the moment, living up to the promise of the new year? Will I improve as a teacher?  Will I strengthen those areas identified as needing improvement? What exciting things will happen within the confines of my room? What growth will I see as the year unfolds?

     God loves new beginnings as well. He loves them so much that He unfolds history as a continual series of new beginnings. God repeatedly presses the restart button, setting us up for new blessings and new successes. In II Corinthians 5:17-18 we read

“¹⁷ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. ¹⁸ All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation;…”

     As my students file into the classroom, how will I see them; especially those whom I taught the year before? Will I look at them and see the all the mistakes from last year, or will I join the Lord in His ministry of rebirth. As a teacher this is critical for when I fail to discard the past, I force my students to carry all their old baggage with them. I need to develop the same ability the Lord has and cast any mistakes or offenses into the sea of forgetfulness. That way the year will unfold well, with great growth and advances.