A Clean Slate

​There’s nothing like that lingering scent of fresh air after rain. But that’s not all that’s refreshing about a downpour. It also refreshes the ground and vegetation. It erases any tracks, kills the dust, and gives the earth a fresh look. It’s a clean slate. A new start.
 
That's what we’re given each day, too. It may not start with a fresh rain scent, but it’s a clean slate nonetheless.
 
I could choose to wallow in depression and self-pity as a result of things in my past, but what good would that do? It wouldn’t be beneficial to me nor to anyone around me.
 
Instead, I need to look at each day as a new opportunity, a chance to learn from my past mistakes and hurts and to do better. Does that mean I won’t make any more mistakes? Absolutely not. I will. But I’m not going to set out to do that. I’m going to take advantage of this clean slate and make new marks.
 
I could long for what could have been or maybe even what should have been, but that won’t accomplish anything. And life is too short to waste on things like that.
 
Just as the rain refreshes the earth, God gives us a clean slate when we come to Him. He takes away the pain of our past and replaces it with forgiveness. He gives us a new identity. We might fall back into our old ways on occasion, but He's always there to pull us out and put us back on the right track.
 
What are you going to do with the clean slate you've been given today?

---

You might also like:
A New Endeavor
At a Crossroads
​Unquenchable Love