steve penny » New Beginnings

Wind waves

Steve Penny — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 20:30:24 +0000

Sitting at Mooloolaba at 5.30 in the morning and watching the sun announce the new day to all and sundry. It dawned on me that God causes the new day to arise for all, without regard for rich or poor, male or female, saint or sinner.
The rising sun announces to all that His mercies are new and fresh each morning.
The new day announces the power of new beginnings by God’s grace.
The new day announces that yesterday’s sorrow and defeat is where it belongs – in the past.
The new day announces that all of heavens fulness is available to them who believe.
And most of all the new day announces that our Lord and Christ is the risen Son of righteousness with healing for all.
Wow! And that is just the first moments of a new day – I wonder what other acts of kindness and grace will unfold throughout this new small slice of eternity.

Opportunity

Steve Penny — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 07:25:08 +0000

Sitting at Mooloolaba on a perfect Sunshine Coast day.
Sipping coffee and relaxing after one of the most disturbing and
destructive Xmas- New Year seasons in QLD history. And sadly the
destruction and torment continues into other states of Australia
and in fact to many other nations of the world. Our QlD floods will
remain in our memory long after the streets are clean and the
houses rebuilt. The graphic media coverage has meant we have seen
almost every disturbing scene as it happened. Some things we need
to remember about hard times and tragic circumstances. A. There
will always be storms and unexpected seasons in life. B. There is
always someone going through a worse storm than us. You are never
alone in a storm – the God who loves you is always with you. D.
There are always many people who will help you through your storm -
and help clean up after the storm. E. There are three stages to a
destructive season in our lives. 1. Survival – this first season is
our initial human response to adverse circumstances. Just hang on
and try an make it through. During this time our adrenalin is
pumping and helps us get through the onslaught. 2. Sorrow – the
next emotion that hits us is a sense of sorrow and loss. Whether it
is a flood or a death of a loved one, or a bad accident, sorrow
always follows the initial period of survival. This is a healthy
emotion as it is the human soul getting free of inner trauma. It is
a good thing to let the tears flow for a little while as the river
of tears always follows a river of torment. 3. Stimulus – this
third stage of tragedy happens as a direct result of destruction
and loss. The Stimulus of new life and the power of new beginnings
is written into the DNA of creation. Even when experiencing the
loss of something precious the human soul is designed to have hope
and faith for the future. No-one can know when the stimulus of new
life will sprout again- but it will. New spending, new buildings,
new friends, new directions, new babies, new laughter. It will come
and it will bring new joy. Perhaps it is too soon to suggest that
new life will spring up again – but just watch the rebuilding
efforts of our wonderful friends all over Queensland as they move
through their sorrow and start to strike a blow and plant a seed to
express their hopes of a new and better tomorrow. Our thoughts,
prayers and practical support are with you all.

Sell the Harley

Steve Penny — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:40:54 +0000

Sometimes in life there are seasons when change is neccesary.
I was out with friends over the weekend and one of them mentioned he was selling his Harley motorbike. The other friend was amazed asking incredulously why he would do such a crazy thing.
His response was simple. Things have changed and I want the money to do other things.
When change happens – and it should be often, here are some simple keys.
1.Only change direction to step into new seasons – but always keep your destination in mind.
2. Sell your bike or other secondary items – but never sell the farm.
3. Prune and cut back – but never weaken the roots that keep you planted.
4. Keep you family and friends close and help them get through the check points of change.
5. Make change a new beginning – not a bad ending.
6. Don’t sorrow over the things you sell or lose – find joy in looking for new things.
7. Jesus is the God of continual new beginnings – follow Him.

Joy comes in the morning

Steve Penny — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 19:43:59 +0000

Joy is always associated with new experiences and new beginnings. The morning is the beginning of a new day – which is another little slice of eternity wrapped in time. Never let your night extend into a new day. Everyone has a few nights of darkness and despair in life but if you learn to leave them behind at dawn – you will find your days filled with joy. Joy comes in the morning. This is an infallible God promise to all of creation. I have birds outside my bedroom window that start rejoicing every morning even before the sun comes up. They announce the new day with unrestrained rejoicing. If nature can do it so can you. Practice welcoming the new day with thanks and praise to God and soon you will find the joy that God promises comes with every new day. You don’t have to go looking for it as the Bible promises that it will come to you. You simply have to create the anticipation for the arrival of joy.
Remember – joy hangs around in the company of two other friends. Their names are – Love and Peace.
Get these three into your life and everything changes.
Love – Joy – Peace.
Love the life you have and the ones you are with. Just make up your mind that what you have – and who you share it with – is worth loving.
Seek to be at peace in all things. Commit to keeping your peace on the inside. If you can live peaceably with yourself you will be at peace with others.
You work on loving your life and keeping the peace – and joy will come to you every morning.
Hey when joy turns up – she is ready to party. Then life becomes a sequence of sweet daily encounters.
Make sure you find your joy again today. She sure makes life interesting.

Exits and entries

Steve Penny — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 23:43:08 +0000

There is always divided opinion on the importance of both exits and entries. Some wax eloquent that exits are the greatest judge of a person, whereas others put more focus on the way a person begins a new project, relationship or season.
The Bible clearly shows where God puts His emphasis.
God told the people of Israel to record their journey to the promised land according to their beginnings. Tiherefore the account of their journeying is recorded after each new destination they planned.
You see – endings should take care of themselves. If you start the day well it will continue well.
If you start a new relationship on the right foundations then it will continue well.
If you begin a journey with the right attitude it will go well for you.
Endings are important – but they should take care of themselves if they are viewed as the open doors to a new beginning.
It is only when an ending has inherent within it a sense of loss that people struggle to accept it and then handle it badly.
However handling new beginnings well is of even greater importance as it lays a foundation for the next season of your life which in turn is shaping the future endings you will experience. Always begin with the end in mind.
Here are my recommendations for beginning a new season or project etc.
1. Accept it as God’s doing and therefore a gift from above.
2. Begin humbly – new seasons always make you look good.
3. Don’t despise the previous season – somebody worked hard to get to this point.
4. Dont take on something with a prejudice plan- wait to spy out the land first.
5. Love the excitement of new beginnings and draw strengh from the adrenalin rush it provides.
6. Don’t sell off what previous pioneers have given their lives to possess.
7. Do begin with awesome faith and joy as God is allowing you an opportunity to step up to a new level of grace and favour.
I am personally starting a new season in 2010 and am looking to God for it to be my most fruitful ever.
I am also very mindful that the way I start this new season will have a lot to do with how I finish it.
I want to start with the end in mind.