Renew

This word means to “begin again” or to “restore or replenish”. I have had relationships over the years that when I connect up with people I haven’t seen in years, there’s a bit of a renewal to our relationship. There are activities of my life that I have let go, but I have renewed later. I think the word “renew” is a relative of “resolute” or its derivative, “resolution”.

Samuel had already anointed Saul as king of Israel, but evidently Saul didn’t really know what to do with that. When the Ammonites came against the town of Jabesh-Gilead, the word was delivered to Saul. The town of Jabesh-Gilead were to surrender and have their right eye gouged out or be killed when the Ammonites took over the town. Saul stepped up to lead and gathered over 300,000 fighting men for Israel and destroyed the Ammonites. What happened next was the beginning of Saul’s career as king. Check this out….

¹⁴ Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us all go to Gilgal to renew the kingdom.” ¹⁵ So they all went to Gilgal, and in a solemn ceremony before the Lord they made Saul king. Then they offered peace offerings to the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites were filled with joy. (1 Samuel 11:14-15 NLT)

Sometimes it takes a big event for me to notice that I need a renewal. I need to renew my heart for the Lord because I get busy doing things on my own. I need to renew my relationships and restate my commitment to the ones closest to me. I know that during COVID-19 I have sorely missed daily interaction with colleagues at work. The video meetings are super helpful, but they are not a substitute for person to person interaction.

I want my daily time with the Lord to renew my heart to Him. I want to “begin again” with Him.

I want my daily time with the Lord to “restore and replenish” my relationship with the Lord.

Renewal is a powerful move. I am often stronger after renewal than at any other time in the relationship. Knowing what I know now, I will make my commitment to Him even stronger and deeper.

Pressing On!

Dwayne