When You Need a Fresh Start
A Rick Warren Sermon Summary
God specializes in fresh starts. The Old Testament is full of instances of the Israelites turning away from God, and God providing for them a fresh start. Through Christ, you can have a new heart, with new thoughts and desires (1).
Here are five steps to have a fresh start today:
Step 1: Stop making excuses for not starting. Your own excuses can be your biggest obstacle. Maybe you’re worried you don’t have what it takes, just as Gideon was when God chose him to liberate his people from an oppressive enemy. Follow God anyway, just as Gideon did. Maybe your past failures worry you. Renounce them and depend on God’s mercy. Or perhaps you’re concerned about the unknown future. Waiting for the perfect conditions will get you nowhere. Accept what we can’t control, focus on what can be, keep trying, and trust God with the rest (2).
Step 2: Identify your assets. Yes, Christ is our biggest asset, but you should also take note of where you were the most productive and satisfied in helping others. Remember what you’ve learned, such as from pain and failure; they are the best teachers. Run from your past mistakes. Observe and understand your current condition. Accept your ignorance. Seek out wise counsel and ask for their help (3).
Step 3: Don’t be restricted by your past thinking. Challenge unhelpful thoughts. Have fresh ones. Listen more to God’s word than to the world (4).
Step 4: Plan, trusting God to direct you, and act. God is moved by your faith. Set up multiple goals, including character goals. God is more interested in character than accomplishments (5).
Step 5: Sometimes, you just need to wait. Everything has its timing. Ask others to pray for you. Quietly listen to God’s words. A good decision is better than a fast decision. Remember that it’s easier to get into something than to get out. Be ready to surrender your timetable and control to God. If you yoke up with Christ, you should let Him set the pace (6).
Trust God. Whether things work out the way you want or not, the outcome is in His hands. Everything is His. Nothing belongs to you. Be humble lest you stumble. Like a caring potter reshaping clay, He will lovingly and firmly remake you for His glory and your good (7).
Summarized two sermons by Rick Warren:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3EvJBEb0YU starting at 28 minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW8A46whrmY
Here are five steps to have a fresh start today:
Step 1: Stop making excuses for not starting. Your own excuses can be your biggest obstacle. Maybe you’re worried you don’t have what it takes, just as Gideon was when God chose him to liberate his people from an oppressive enemy. Follow God anyway, just as Gideon did. Maybe your past failures worry you. Renounce them and depend on God’s mercy. Or perhaps you’re concerned about the unknown future. Waiting for the perfect conditions will get you nowhere. Accept what we can’t control, focus on what can be, keep trying, and trust God with the rest (2).
Step 2: Identify your assets. Yes, Christ is our biggest asset, but you should also take note of where you were the most productive and satisfied in helping others. Remember what you’ve learned, such as from pain and failure; they are the best teachers. Run from your past mistakes. Observe and understand your current condition. Accept your ignorance. Seek out wise counsel and ask for their help (3).
Step 3: Don’t be restricted by your past thinking. Challenge unhelpful thoughts. Have fresh ones. Listen more to God’s word than to the world (4).
Step 4: Plan, trusting God to direct you, and act. God is moved by your faith. Set up multiple goals, including character goals. God is more interested in character than accomplishments (5).
Step 5: Sometimes, you just need to wait. Everything has its timing. Ask others to pray for you. Quietly listen to God’s words. A good decision is better than a fast decision. Remember that it’s easier to get into something than to get out. Be ready to surrender your timetable and control to God. If you yoke up with Christ, you should let Him set the pace (6).
Trust God. Whether things work out the way you want or not, the outcome is in His hands. Everything is His. Nothing belongs to you. Be humble lest you stumble. Like a caring potter reshaping clay, He will lovingly and firmly remake you for His glory and your good (7).
Summarized two sermons by Rick Warren:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3EvJBEb0YU starting at 28 minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW8A46whrmY
- Zechariah10:6; Hosea14:4-5; Psalms145:13-14, 51:10; 2 Corinthians 5:17.
- Judges 6:15-16; Isaiah 53:18-19; Proverbs 28:13, 24:10 CEV, 20:32; Ecclesiastes11:4 LB.
- Colossians2:10; Psalms 119:59-60; Galatians3:4; 2Timothy3:14; Proverbs15:22, 11:14, 12:15; 1 Peter 4:10.
- Ephesians 4:23, Psalm 1:1-3, Proverbs 4:23.
- Proverbs 16:9 LB, Matthew 9:29.
- Ecclesiastes 3:1, 8:5-7; Romans 15:30, 3:28; 1 Kings 19:11-13; Proverbs 20:25; Psalms 31:14-15; Matthew 11:28-29.
- Proverbs 16:1, 1 Peter 5:6, Jeremiah 18:4-6.