When you hear certain names, the first thing that you think of isn’t good. What comes to your mind when you hear these names? O.J. Simpson. Casey Anthony. Immediately you think of the word murder. We barely remember O.J.’s football career, and we literally don’t know anything else about Casey’s life.
What they did was terrible—I’m not denying that—but I have always felt a little bit sorry for those whose people whose entire life has been reduced to the worst thing they ever did.
Dive into your memory for a moment. What is the worst thing that you’ve ever thought or done? What would your life be like if, when people heard your name, they only mentioned the worst thing you ever did?
I know that some acts of evil are so heinous that it is hard to see anything besides that wickedness, but I believe very few people (if any) are pure evil in the flesh. There is some sliver of good in all of us.
One of the things I love about the new year is the new start it gives us. Teachers like to remind students on the first day of the semester that everybody still has an A. It’s nice to get to start over in a new classroom with a new teacher and a clean slate.
There are people in our lives who could really use a restart. When we think of their names, we think of how they treated us years ago. Sometimes we’re holding decades-old mistakes over their heads or nursing unending grudges. This new year, would you consider giving someone else a fresh start? Take a step towards reconciliation and forgiveness. See if it isn’t possible to give to others what God has given you. His mercies are new every morning!