Begin Again

by Max Lucado

  Is this a new thought? You’ve heard about the God who made you, watches you, directs you, knows you . . . but the God who fights for you? Who blazes the trail ahead of you? Who defends you? Who collapses walls, stills the sun, and rains hail on the devil and all his forces?

  Did you know that God is fighting for you? That “with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles” (2 Chron. 32:8 NKJV)? That “our God will fight for us” (Neh. 4:20 NKJV)? That the Lord will “fight against those who fight against [you]” (Ps. 35:1 NKJV)?

  God fights for you. Let those four words sink in for a moment.

  God. The CEO, President, King, Supreme Ruler, Absolute Monarch, Czar, Emperor, and Raja of all history. He runs interference and provides cover. He is impeccably perfect, tirelessly strong, unquestionably capable. He is endlessly joyful, wise, and willing. And he . . .

  Fights. He deploys angels and commands weather. He stands down Goliaths and vacates cemeteries. He fights . . .

  For. For your health, family, faith, and restoration. Are the odds against you? Is the coach against you? Is the government against you? Difficult for sure. But God fights for . . .

  You. Yes, you! You with the sordid past. You with the receding hairline. You with the absentee dad. You with the bad back, credit, or job. He fights not just for the rich, pretty, or religious. He fights for the yous of the world. Are you a you?

  The big news of the Bible is not that you fight for God but that God fights for you. And to know this—to know that your Father fights for you—is an unparalleled source of empowerment.

  When God became flesh, he fought for your soul. When Jesus faced the devil in the wilderness, he fought for your peace. When he stood up for the neglected, was he not standing up for you? When he died on the cross for your sins, he fought for your salvation. When he left the Holy Spirit to guide, strengthen, and comfort you, he was fighting for your life.

  Miss this truth and you might as well plant a mailbox in the wilderness. You will be there a long time. But believe this, and watch the clouds begin to clear.

  Believe this:

  [God] won’t let you stumble,

  your Guardian God won’t fall asleep.

  Not on your life! Israel’s

  Guardian will never doze or sleep.

  GOD’S your Guardian,

  right at your side to protect you—

  Shielding you from sunstroke,

  sheltering you from moonstroke.

  GOD guards you from every evil,

  he guards your very life.

  He guards you when you leave and when you return,

  he guards you now, he guards you always.

  (Ps. 121:3–8 THE MESSAGE)

  This is what God wants to be for you; it is his goal for you. This is your inheritance: more victory than defeat, more joy than sadness, more hope than despair, more new-beginning days.

  chapter thirteen

  Keep Believing God’s Promise

  But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

  —MATTHEW 24:13 NKJV

  Late-night news is a poor sedative.

  Last night it was for me. All I wanted was the allergen count and the basketball scores. But to get them, I had to endure the usual monologue of global misery. And last night the world seemed worse than usual.

  Watching the news doesn’t usually disturb me so. I’m not a gloom-and-doom sort of fellow. I feel I’m as good as the next guy in taking human tragedy with a spoon of faith. But last night . . . these days . . . the world seems dark.

  Downtown streets darkened with anger and hate. Innocents trafficked, innocence lost. Homeless, jobless. Pandemic and dread. A society worn out, worked up, and wondering what comes next.

  I wonder what the world will hold for my grandchildren. Their greatest concerns today are finding lightning bugs on a summer night or learning to share with their siblings. Would that their world would always be so innocent. It won’t. Forests shadow every trail, and cliffs edge every turn. Every life has its share of fear. My grandchildren are no exception.

  Nor are your children and grandchildren. And as appealing as a desert island or a monastery might be, seclusion is simply not the answer for facing a scary tomorrow.

  Then what is? Does someone have a hand on the throttle of this train, or has the engineer bailed out just as we come in sight of dead-man’s curve?

  I may have found part of the answer in, of all places, the first chapter of the New Testament. I’ve often thought it strange that Matthew would begin his book with a genealogy. Certainly not good journalism. A list of who-sired-whom wouldn’t get past most editors.

  But then again, Matthew wasn’t a journalist, and the Holy Spirit wasn’t trying to get our attention. He was making a point. God had promised he would give a Messiah through the bloodline of Abraham (Gen. 12:3), and he did.

  “Having doubts about the future?” Matthew asks. “Just take a look at the past.” And with that he opens the cedar chest of Jesus’ lineage and begins pulling out the dirty laundry.

  Believe me, you and I would have kept some of these stories in the closet. Jesus’ lineage is anything but a roll call at the Institute for Halos and Harps. Reads more like the Sunday morning occupancy at the county jail.

  It begins with Abraham, the father of the nation, who more than once lied like Pinocchio just to save his neck (Gen. 12:10–20).

  Abraham’s grandson Jacob was slicker than a Las Vegas card shark. He cheated his brother, lied to his father, got swindled, and then swindled his uncle (Gen. 27, 30).

  Jacob’s son Judah was so blinded by testosterone that he engaged the services of a streetwalker, not knowing she was his daughter-in-law! When he learned her identity, he threatened to have her burned to death for solicitation (Gen. 38).

  Special mention is made of Solomon’s mother, Bathsheba (who bathed in questionable places), and Solomon’s father, David, who watched the bath of Bathsheba (2 Sam. 11:2–3).

  Rahab was a harlot (Josh. 2:1). Ruth was a foreigner (Ruth 1:4).

  Manasseh made the list, even though he forced his son to walk through fire (2 Kings 21:6). His son Amon is on the list, even though he rejected God (2 Kings 21:22).

  Seems that almost half the kings were crooks, half were embezzlers, and all but a handful worshiped an idol or two for good measure.

  And so reads the list of Jesus’ not-so-great grandparents. Seems like the only common bond between this lot was a promise. A promise from heaven that God would use them to send his Son.

  Why did God use these people? Didn’t have to. Could have just laid the Savior on a doorstep. Would have been simpler that way. And why does God tell us their stories? Why does God give us an entire testament of the blunders and stumbles of his people?

  Simple. He knew what you and I watched on the news last night. He knew you would fret. He knew I would worry. And he wants us to know that when the world goes wild, he stays calm.

  Want proof? Read the last name on the list. In spite of all the crooked halos and tasteless gambols of his people, the last name on the list is the first one promised—Jesus.

  “Joseph was the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus. Jesus is called the Christ” (Matt. 1:16 NCV).

  Period. No more names are listed. No more are needed. As if God is announcing to a doubting world, “See, I did it. Just as I said I would. The plan succeeded.”

  The famine couldn’t starve it.

  Four hundred years of Egyptian slavery couldn’t oppress it.

  Wilderness wanderings couldn’t lose it.

  Babylonian captivity couldn’t stop it.

  Clay-footed pilgrims couldn’t spoil it.

  The promise of the Messiah threads its way through forty-two generations of rough-cut stones, forming a necklace fit for the King who came. Just as promised.

  And the promise remains.

  “Those people who keep their faith until the end will be saved” (Matt. 24:13 NCV), Joseph’s child assures.

  “In
this world you will have trouble, but be brave! I have defeated the world” (John 16:33 NCV).

  The engineer has not abandoned the train. Nuclear war is no threat to God. Yo-yo economies don’t intimidate the heavens. Immoral leaders have never derailed the plan.

  God keeps his promise.

  See for yourself. In the manger. He’s there.

  See for yourself. In the tomb. He’s gone.

  part four

  Influence Your World

  You were made to make a difference. Do you desire to do so?

  Start with your head. Scripture places a premium on what you know. “We have come to know and believe the love God has for us” (1 John 4:16 NLV).

  Jesus did not say, “You shall feel the truth,” “You shall experience the truth,” or “You shall emotionally bond with the truth.” Rather he promised, “You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (John 8:32 NCV, emphasis mine).

  Use your head, but don’t stop there. What starts in the head continues in the heart.

  Facts evolve into faith. Isn’t this what happened to Timothy? Paul commended him: “You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them” (2 Tim. 3:14 NASB).

  See the knowing-believing sequence again? “. . . in the things you have learned and become convinced of . . .”

  What begins in the head must descend into the heart. Doesn’t it always? Can’t we simply assume that the right knowledge will lead to the right life? It didn’t for Felix. During the life of the apostle Paul, Felix served as governor. When Paul was imprisoned, Felix had the authority to release him. But Paul fascinated Felix. What’s more, Felix was tutored by Paul. “[Felix] used to send for him quite often and converse with him” (Acts 24:26 NASB).

  Can you imagine studying Scripture with Paul? This is Pelé showing you how to kick a soccer ball. Monet giving you art lessons. Ernest Hemingway reading your theme paper. Felix benefited. He gained a “more exact knowledge about the Way” (Acts 24:22 NASB). He knew the facts. He heard the truth. He filled his mind with knowledge.

  But Felix refused to let the facts touch his heart. “Felix became frightened and said, ‘Go away for the present, and when I find time I will summon you’” (Acts 24:25 NASB).

  The governor enjoyed the intellectual chitchat, academic stimulus, philosophical sparring. Facts for the head? Okay. But a change of the heart? No way. Felix erected a barricade at his Adam’s apple. Paul may have been thinking of him when he spoke of people who are “always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim. 3:7).

  Some years ago a Christian scholar and an Israeli guide cohosted a Bible lands tour. The guide knew details about the life of Jesus the way Beethoven knew piano keys. He grew up in the shadow of the Mount of Olives and made a living reciting facts about Jesus. But the guide didn’t believe in him. Toward the end of the trip, the scholar gave him this counsel: “You know more about Jesus than anyone I know. You just need to let the facts sink one foot lower.”

  May I show you how this works? Suppose you acquire new knowledge about God’s grace. You quarry a jewel from 1 John: “The blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin” (1:7 NLT). Christ does for your sins what windshield wipers do for raindrops—he continually removes them.

  Wow. What a phenomenal fact to know. But what will you do with it? Jot it down in the margin of your Bible? Mention it in conversations? Underline the scripture? Good starts. But so far all you’ve done is work with your head.

  Press the elevator button, and let the truth descend into your heart. Go from academic to personal. “Oh, Lord, thank you. Every sin perpetually cleansed. Today’s greed, yesterday’s gripes—all clean. By your mercy I am as pure as the angels of heaven. What a gift.”

  That’s called receiving. Refuse to be a Felix, full of facts. And choose to be a disciple, flowing with faith.

  As you receive, wonders occur. Smiles replace frowns. Joy eclipses anxiety. Rest replaces panic. And, in time, facts in your head will become faith in your heart and create the fruit of your hands.

  Yes, “doing” matters to God. But “doing” follows receiving. Paul carefully presents the proper order:

  “The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you (Phil. 4:9 NKJV, emphasis mine).

  Learn.

  Receive.

  Do.

  Facts enter your head, descend into your heart as faith, and exit your hands as energy. Deeds of kindness. Acts of generosity. Calling on the sick. Volunteering for the committee. Baking pies for Max. (Just kidding.) The work of the hands follows the filling of the head and heart.

  You were made to make a difference. Let Christ make a difference in you, and you will do the same in the world.

  chapter fourteen

  Be You

  Each person is given something to do that shows who God is.

  —1 CORINTHIANS 12:7 THE MESSAGE

  No one else has your “you-ness.” No one else in all history has your unique history. No one else in God’s great design has your divine design. No one else shares your blend of personality, ability, and ancestry. When God made you, the angels stood in awe and declared, “We’ve never seen one like that before.” And they never will again. Your journey is one of a kind.

  You are heaven’s first and final attempt at you. You are matchless, unprecedented, and unequaled.

  Consequently, on your new-beginning journey you can do something no one else can do in a fashion no one else can.

  Others can manage a team but not with your style. Others can cook a meal but not with your flair. Others can teach kids, tell stories, aviate airplanes. You aren’t the only person with your skill. But you are the only one with your version of your skill. You entered the world uniquely equipped. You were “knit . . . together . . . woven together in the dark of the womb” (Ps. 139:13, 15 NLT), “intricately and skillfully formed [as if embroidered with many colors]” (v. 15 AMP).

  Each of us—not some of us, a few of us, or the elite among us. Each of us has a special way—a facility, a natural strength, a tendency, or an inclination. A beauty that longs to be revealed and released. An oak within the acorn, pressing against the walls of its shell. This “special way” is quick to feel the wind at its back. It is the work for which you are ideally suited.

  This is your destiny. This is you at your best. When you stand at the intersection of your skill and God’s call, you are standing at the corner of Begin Again Avenue and Second Chance Boulevard, where Noah stood after the flood.

  Many people stop short of their destiny. They settle for someone else’s story. “Grandpa was a butcher, Dad was a butcher, so I guess I’ll be a butcher.” “Everyone I know is in farming, so I guess I’m supposed to farm.” Consequently, they risk leading dull, joyless, and fruitless lives. They never sing the song God wrote for their voices. They never cross a finish line with heavenward-stretched arms and declare, “I was made to do this!”

  They fit in, settle in, and blend in. But they never find their call. Don’t make the same mistake.

  “It is God himself who has made us what we are and given us new lives from Christ Jesus; and long ages ago he planned that we should spend these lives in helping others” (Eph. 2:10 TLB). Your existence is not accidental. Your skills are not incidental. God “shaped each person in turn” (Ps. 33:15 THE MESSAGE).

  Everybody gets a gift. And these gifts come in different doses and combinations. “Each person is given something to do that shows who God is” (1 Cor. 12:7 THE MESSAGE).

  Our inheritance is grace based and equal. But our assignments are tailor-made. No two snowflakes are the same. No two fingerprints are the same. Why would two skill sets be the same? No wonder Paul said, “Make sure you understand what the Master wants” (Eph. 5:17 THE MESSAGE).

  Do you understand what your Master wants? Do you know what makes you, you? Have you identified the features that
distinguish you from every other human who has inhaled oxygen?

  You have an “acreage” to develop, a lot in life. So “make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that” (Gal. 6:4 THE MESSAGE).

  You be you. No one else is like you. Imagine a classroom of kids on a given day in a given school. Ten of the twenty-five students are fighting to stay awake. Ten others are alert but ready to leave. Five students are not only awake and alert, but they don’t want the class to end. They even do odd things like extra homework or tutoring. What class was that intriguing to you?

  “If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies” (1 Peter 4:11 NKJV, emphasis mine). Ability reveals destiny. What is your ability? What do you do well? What do people ask you to do again? What task comes easily? What topic keeps your attention?

  Your skill set is your road map. It leads you to your territory. Take note of your strengths. They are bread crumbs that will lead you out of the wilderness. God loves you too much to give you a job and not the skills. Identify yours.

  Look for ways to align your job with your skills. This may take time. This may take several conversations with your boss. This may take trial and error . . . but don’t give up. Not every tuba player has the skills to direct the orchestra. If you can, then do. If you can’t, blast away on your tuba with delight.

  “Stir up the gift of God which is in you” (2 Tim. 1:6 NKJV, emphasis mine).

  You be you. Don’t be your parents or grandparents. You can admire them, appreciate them, and learn from them. But you cannot be them. You aren’t them. “Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life” (Gal. 6:4–5 THE MESSAGE).