Rise up and be made new

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here! (2 Corinthians 5:17)

It’s the little things that make me happy. God’s love gifts often leave me breathless.

A few weeks ago, I opened the front door to encounter a bird quickly flitting away. Since I don’t have any trees right next to my house, I wondered where he came from and how I startled him?

Attached to my door is a grapevine wreath wired with silk magnolia blossoms. Wondering if my suspicions were correct, I placed my cell phone in camera mode and reached up to snap a photo looking down at the wreath from above.

Imagine my joy at seeing my captured photo of a nest resting amongst the vines in my wreath. Reaching up again, I angled my phone to look down inside the nest to see two tiny, light-blue, speckled eggs. Birds had not just made a nest in my wreath; they had laid eggs inside it!

Watching the nest, I later spotted my bird parents flying away and into one of the trees in my yard. Seeing their coloration, I was able to identify my feathery friends as house finches. Two weeks and three more laid eggs later, I’m now watching the five hatchlings growing bigger and happier each day – right at my front door!

And so it is with God. From out of death, life. From the inanimate life of my dead wreath, God led this tiny bird couple to create, incubate, and nurture new life.

What a lesson that is for all of us! How often have I felt that I was at my wit’s end, with no hope for anything new to blossom?

And yet, it is often when I lay my old self and my dead dreams down at my Savior’s feet that He can bring forth new life in a more magnificent manner than I could have ever imagined.

Surrender is hard but necessary if we want to grow. As I’m watching these little babies growing bigger each day, I’m excited to see the miracle of new Creation played out in front of me. Witnessing this miracle before me, I am committed to re-surrender myself to the only one who can renew, restore, and rejuvenate me.

I am a consistent work-in-progress and need my Savior each and every day. I crave my Heavenly Father’s love, guidance, and discipline to create, incubate, and mold me into who He wants me to be. While I am no longer the weak hatchling I once was when I first accepted Christ, my struggle toward His perfection continues every day of the life that He has given me.

“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10)

I am your Creation, Lord, and I need your steadfast love and support to overcome my sinful nature and grow closer to your side. Today and every day, I surrender anew to You, Lord Jesus. I am your servant. Make me who You want me to be.