25th Day of Lent

Jesus replied, "I tell you for certain that you must be born from above before you can see God's kingdom!"
Nicodemus asked, "How can a grown man ever be born a second time?"
Jesus answered:
I tell you for certain that before you can get into God's kingdom, you must be born not only by water, but by the Spirit. Humans give life to their children. Yet only God's Spirit can change you into a child of God. Don't be surprised when I say that you must be born from above. Only God's Spirit gives new life. The Spirit is like the wind that blows wherever it wants to. You can hear the wind, but you don't know where it comes from or where it is going.
John 3:3-8 (Contemporary English Version)

Have you ever wished you could start over? Is there any part of your life that, given the chance, you would love to live over again… but differently? We can’t change the past, but we can be reborn. Jesus is acknowledging the human condition: how do we deal with our brokenness? What can we do with all the fall-out from the wrong decisions and harmful actions of the past? What hope can we have that we won’t go on repeating the same mistakes as our fractured humanity repeats the cycle again and again? Be reborn! Be born from above, by God’s Spirit! God can give us new life; not by us just trying harder, but by God’s Spirit empowering us from within.

We are careful not to judge people by what they seem to be, though we once judged Christ in that way. Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new.
2 Corinthians 5:16-17 (Contemporary English Version)

Take a moment to consider something in your life where you would like a second chance. Look it square in the face. Don’t flinch. Ask God to forgive you and receive God’s Spirit, making you new. Three times today (some time this morning, this afternoon and this evening) pause for just 60 seconds and breathe deeply. Consciously breathe in God’s Spirit, God’s love, forgiveness and rebirth. Breathe out guilt, fear and shame.