In The Beginning

What do you think of when you hear the phrase, “In the beginning”? Many of us would simply complete the phrase using a well-known Scripture verse.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:1

But if God is from everlasting to everlasting as the Scriptures teach, what does this verse mean by “in the beginning?” I assume the verse refers to the beginning of the universe. Certainly not the beginning of God, for He has no beginning!

Some people hearing the phrase, “in the beginning,” might simply ask, “The beginning of what?” In our world there are many beginnings. Beginning of a family, a generation, a country. Beginning of a job, a business, a church. Or like now, the beginning of a new year.

The End Before The Beginning?

Scripture tells us, “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof…” (Ecclesiastes 7:8) How we end what we begin matters. I suppose then that I need to think about the end of something before I begin.

The last two years have been so full of chaos and heartaches that my mind hardly knows how to think about the new year we are beginning. It would be easier to ignore the calendar, forget we’ve just begun another year, and look only at today. But maybe I need to push myself to consider, “How do I want to end this year?”

God Plans Ahead

When God created the heavens and the earth “in the beginning,” did He think ahead? Scripture tells us that before the earth was formed, God knew His creation would need to be rescued, and He provided a way. He planned for the end before He began.

For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.

1 Peter 1:18-20 (NIV)

Jesus, Son of the living God, was “chosen before the creation of the world.” God knew we would need a Savior. Rather than leave us to flounder on our own at the end, our Father provided ahead of time for our redemption. He knew that the end was far more important than the beginning, and He prepared for us what we could not prepare for ourselves.

God chose, before “the beginning,” to send His only Son at the proper time. Jesus came to show us the Father and redeem us, to save us from the darkness of death and provide the way for us to transfer to the kingdom of His beloved Son, the One who alone gives Life.

Can I Plan Ahead?

As I look at the year before me, I’m asking God to direct my heart and my thoughts. How does He want me to end the year? I’m confident there will be hard things to come my way this year as well as times of joy. I can’t focus on what may happen, or life becomes impossible. But I can focus on the One Who loves me so much that He willingly planned ahead to sacrifice Himself for me so that my end will be better than my beginning!

With Jesus as my focus, my mind can actually think about how God wants me to end this year and what I need to do to help make that happen. If I want to end the year stronger in my faith, I need to spend time with the Father and the Son in His word. I can actually set goals for myself on what Scripture I should study this year, and how and when to do it.

If I want my daily walk to show more joy and peace and love, I need to let the Spirit of the living God work in me so that His fruit is more evident. Hiding God’s word in my heart allows the Spirit to bring His truths to mind when I need them. I can plan what Scripture I should memorize and how and when to do so.

Time Flies So Plan Now

I’ve lived long enough to know that our days fly by quickly. In the beginning of this new year, may God give each of us a willingness to plan with Him for the end of the year before our weeks disappear and the end is here.

(Scripture: KJV, unless otherwise noted. Photos: Taken at Tribble Mill Park by Carolyn Thigpen)