A new creation

I’ve been thinking about how the Bible tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:17, that we are a new creation in Christ. When I first declared that Jesus is my savior, I didn’t quite fully know what that meant to be honest. After years of going to church, I did not understand what it meant to be a “new creation” because I truly did not feel like much had changed in my life since I prayed to be saved. As time went on, I actually felt discouraged because I didn’t know what the purpose of being alive even was. So I began to ask God, “why am I even here?” truth is, we can often go through life without ever opening up the manual, in other words the Bible for ourselves. I went and looked for that verse where it says that we are a new creation, and slowly but surely, I began to discover so much. I came upon Matthew 6:33 which says to seek FIRST the kingdom of God and His righteousness then everything else will be added(emphasize added by me). This verse was a catalyst in a process of restoration in my life, where I went from thinking I had no purpose and life had no meaning, to realizing who God created me to be and the honor it is to be His daughter. True abundant life, that Jesus paid for begins the moment we surrender our ways. The more I dove into His word, the more I realized how significant and symbolic the life of Jesus on earth was. He came so that we could have access to the Father once again, so that we could live an eternal life with Him, and so that the Holy Spirit can dwell in us and therefore we could see and and expand His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven (see Matt 6:10).

When Jesus died on the cross for our sin (or our separation from God) was so that we could be brought back in union with him. This was the symbol of our surrender, the death of the life we have lived. However the process of being a new creation, doesn’t happen over night, it’s an unfolding that happens when we acknowledge, accept, and appreciate the old us that did the best it could before encountering Jesus. Our stories are filled with pieces that are longing to be reconciled with Christ, as we allow Him to reveal those parts that have felt unseen, that have been hurt and even misused get to be restored. As we navigate those deep waters of our soul, it is only then that we begin to live as new creations that are made in His image.