Starting Over

On days when I was ready to give it all up and reach for the bottle, my sponsor would say, "it's okay, you can start over today." That's one of my favorite lessons of recovery. I can start over any time I need to.

Leave your foolish ways behind, and begin to live; learn how to be wise. ~Prov 9:6

Starting over doesn't mean it's okay to indulge my addiction and then repent. What it means is, a bad day doesn't last forever. We all have bad days. We can just start fresh from that point. If it does mean a slip, we can forgive ourselves and start over with new and stronger resolve to do better.

My husband and I use this in our marriage every time we bicker about something. One of us will have the heart to say, "can we just start over?" We just stop where we are, let go of the battle and resolve to forgive and forget whatever caused the tension between us. This has been a lifeline for our marriage. After 13 years of marriage, we are more in love and better in our communication every day. We continue to grow along spiritual lines together.

It's not about changing the situation, it's about changing an attitude. I can cancel my stinking thinking and come at the subject with a fresh perspective when I start over. Just take a deep breath, let go of whatever is frustrating me and go at it from a new angle.

We can all make that commitment in any area of our lives. Angry at your boss? Start over. Underwear in a bunch over traffic? Start over. Family upsetting you? Start over. Neighbors complaining about your dog? Start over.

New Year. New opportunities to approach life from new angles. Start over.

Lord, help us to leave our foolish ways behind and see things clearly from Your angle. Teach us to be wise. In Jesus' name, amen.