Every heavy breath, every disappointment, every aching of the heart is a chance to come to Jesus, the one who said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matt 11:28-30).

Every moment of rejoicing, every good thing, every gift in life is a chance to abide in the one who said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). 

Every step of life is a chance to walk with Jesus in complete dependence and with genuine faith. We really can release all our cares, needs and desires to him. We can repent of all our sins and failures. We can hit the reset button of our lives and realign ourselves with the creator, sustainer and lover of our souls. We can bear our souls open before the Holy Lord Almighty whose glory fills the whole earth.

Jesus delights when we turn our faces to him, and he is always ready to embrace his beloved. He is benevolent and the giver of every good and perfect gift. His goodness is more than we could ever imagine or comprehend. We may not always understand what God is up to in our lives, but assuredly he is always working for our good. We need eyes that see and ears that hear and hearts that receive all his blessings and provisions. We need a greater vision and understanding of how much Jesus has done and will do for us.

As we experience Jesus more and as our perspective about him is heightened and transformed, we may reimagine a life lived with Jesus. We can rewalk over and over with him with renewal, restoration and rejoicing. We can reenter our Christian lives with light, life and love and in the power of the Spirit of Jesus reaching out to a dark and dying world in need of love, grace, mercy and peace.