Wednesday, August 17, 2011


FRESH!
By Peggy Kleckner

“His mercies begin afresh each morning.”
Lamentations 3:23 NLT

Fresh-baked cookies beckon us to take and eat; fresh-brewed coffee calls us to take and drink; fresh-from-the-garden vegetables call for cool rinsing for a mouth-watering snack. As a young girl, I remember coming home after school surprised by fresh-baked hot cross buns on the table. What a treat! You could smell the aroma as you walked through the kitchen door. Mom had just drizzled the icing across the tops. What a joy to be told that, yes, they were for us! Warm and fresh and just for us (I had five brothers and sisters). As we sat down to enjoy, we talked over our school day and all the “tragedy and drama” of the day fell away as our fingers and mouths got sticky and our stomachs became full.

God’s fresh mercies do the same. He invites us each morning to sit down and share our lives with Him. He calls us to take and eat of Him…take of Him and be filled when we are empty. We are to allow His mercies to rinse over us, cleanse us, refresh us and renew us. Our God calls to us each morning to share with Him our heartaches, mishaps and failures. And as we do, He reaches out to us with fresh mercies – fresh from the pot, fresh from the oven, fresh from the garden!

Our God is not a God of day-old, leftover or spoiled. He is a God of fresh, new beginnings. Are you in need of a fresh start?

GOING DEEPER:
1. Have you received God’s fresh mercies today? In what specific area of your life do you need them most?
2. What could you do right now to make sure you’ll meet with Him tomorrow?

FURTHER READING:
Romans 8:1; Titus 3:4-7; Isaiah 30:18

Peggy is a wife and mother of four adult children—two sons and two stepsons and is an active encourager at Oakwood.