Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread.

Leslie Coe wrote our reading, and he titled it A Fresh Start.

Chinese New Year celebrations are observed by Chinese families everywhere.

These festivities are tied to the lunar calendar, usually

falling somewhere in late January to mid-February. These times for family reunions come

with many traditions, some of great significance. Buying and donning new clothes, giving our homes

a good cleaning, and paying off outstanding debts,

remind us we're putting the past behind and starting the year with a clean slate. These traditions

also remind me of our new life in Christ. No matter who we used to be, or what we've done,

we can put it all behind us.

We can stop beating ourselves up over our past and let go of the guilt,

knowing we're completely forgiven because of Jesus' death on the cross.

And we can start afresh, knowing we can rely on the Holy Spirit to daily transform us to be

more like Jesus. That's why Paul reminds believers in 2 Corinthians chapter 5,

the old has gone, the new is here. We too can say this because of the simple but powerful truth. God has reconciled us

to himself through Christ and no longer counts our sins against us. Others around us may not be willing

to forget our past wrongdoing, but we can take heart that in God's eyes, we're no longer condemned.

As Paul points out in Romans 8, if God is for us, who can be against us?

Let's enjoy the fresh start God has given us through Jesus.

Today's Our Daily Bread Devotional Scripture reading is from 2 Corinthians Chapter 5, verses 16 through 20.

So from now on, we regard no one from a worldly point of view.

Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.

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