“Life is made up of a series of opportunities to begin again” (The Rule of Benedict, Joan Chittister). I find hope, and a bit of excitement, in that thought. Looking back, I see that life has given me many opportunities to start anew. One of the most recent was leaving our ministry and life in the Dominican Republic and moving back to the United States. This was an all-out, all-in, out-of-the-box experience that lasted almost ten years.

While there are no pat answers or specific steps one takes to begin again (and I so wish there were), I do see some life rhythms that have developed in those times of change and transition. They are not necessarily in this order, rather, they seem to be intermingled in my life pattern. Here are some stages I have passed through, not always gracefully, but always covered by God’s grace.

LETTING GOD OF PEOPLE, PLACES, AND CIRCUMSTANCES 

It seems that all new beginnings bring with them an opportunity to let go and to let God. The late poet Mary Oliver wrote: “I think this is/The prettiest world—so long as you don’t mind/ a little dying.” Life contains many deaths. As we walk through Holy Week this spring and experience the Easter Sunday resurrection, we see that when someone gives themself to death and dying, beautiful things can come about. 

I have been encouraged in this letting go process as I read…

Everyone has to put down some part of their past sometime. Everyone makes a major life change at some time or other. Everyone has to be open to being formed again. The only thing that can possibly deter the new formation is if we ourselves refuse to let go of what was. If we cling to the past, the future is closed to us (Chittister). 

I desire to see change in my life as an opportunity for God to create something new.

WALKING WITH JESUS, PAYING ATTENTION, STAYING ALERT 

I am learning to trust that God is in control of my “what’s next?” This stage involves paying attention to where God is and where He wants to take me. Listening to my spiritual longings, enjoying that which is God in the present moment, and attending to what God is opening up for me next. I can gently ask myself questions like, “What moves me?” and “What do I want to devote myself to in this season of life?”

Questions that help me discern God’s leading are: “Is this person, this group, this place, calling out the best in me? Is this where I fit? Is this the place where I can most become what God created me to be? Is this the path on which I see the footsteps of God most clearly in front of me?^” (Chittister).

All this takes some time and patience. I can look at what God says through nature. How does an apple ripen? It just sits in the sun. It gets ready to “bear fruit.” I like to think that I am always getting ready so God can move in my life. I want to be continually growing toward being deeply satisfied spiritually and bearing fruit that will last (John 15:16).

LIVING ON MISSION 

Jesus tells us that he came to preach to the lost (Mark 1:38). For what purpose have I come? What is my mission in life or, better said, what part of God’s mission am I to play now?

This stage could also be described as “moving on with purpose.” My focus is, as author Matthew Kelly says, to become the best version of myself—to make moment-by-moment choices that lead me to celebrate and defend my best self. To do what I can, where I can, how I can, right now to make the world a better place. My greatest strength is my ability to make a difference in the lives of other people. To speak into the lives of others. Or as my spiritual director encourages me, “You be you, Cherry.” Saint Catherine of Siena phrased it as, “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” 

My husband and I spent months visiting the Dominican Republic, an island bursting with God’s goodness with its awe-inspiring ocean, sandy beaches, majestic mountains, tropical flowers, and lush vegetation. Walking one day amidst all His glory, I felt God say to me, “Tend well what I have given you.” 

I love the words tend and cultivate. Maybe it’s my farm background, but these words carry a lot of weight with me. Tending and cultivating that which God has gifted me includes caring for myself, my health—physical, emotional, and spiritual—my marriage and family, and my unique gifts, such as writing, recovery, and bicultural living.

I believe that we do best when we know ourselves, our strengths, and our limits in the moment and take good care of ourselves. When our lives are too full or we are living too fast—what my husband’s mentor calls “going over the speed limit in life”—we don’t take the time to reflect, ponder, or really put ourselves in another’s shoes. Instead of struggling to do as much as we can, may with say like Mary Oliver, “My work is loving the world.” 

When spring comes to visit us again and we see evidence of new beginnings all around us, may we drink it all in, open to the new in our own lives, and simply pray, “God, grant that I may love you always; then, do with me as you will” (Stations of the Cross).

Read:

• "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it" (Isaiah 43:19)?

Reflect:

• What new opportunities has God placed before you recently?
• What do you need to let go of to embrace God’s next step for you?
• How can you cultivate a deeper connection with God in this season?

Pray:

• Lord, thank You for the gift of new beginnings. Teach me to let go of what no longer serves Your purpose in my life. Open my eyes to see the path You’ve prepared and fill my heart with courage to follow it. May I walk in step with Your Spirit, bearing fruit for Your kingdom. Amen.