An Invitation To Pause - Triple 8s

 

     Today is August 8, 2026. The eighth month. The eighth day. And even this year quietly points me back to the number eight (2+6). Whether you see that as coincidence or simply a gentle reminder, today caused me to pause and reflect. For me, the number eight has long represented new beginnings, and today reminded me that beginning again doesn’t always happen because life went according to plan. Sometimes it happens because life changed us. Over the past few years, I’ve realized I’ve been grieving more than the loss of my father. I’ve been grieving the woman I was before illness, before loss, before plans shifted, and before life asked me to become someone I never expected to be. For a long time, I thought healing meant finding my way back to who I used to be. But today, I wonder if healing is really about having the courage to embrace who I am becoming.

     The Bible says, “Behold, I am doing a new thing” (Isaiah 43:19). It doesn’t say God is recreating yesterday. It says He is doing something new. That truth has become an invitation for me to release the expectations I once carried and receive this season for what it is. I may not be the same woman I was in 2024 or 2025, just as I wasn’t the same woman after becoming a mother, an author, or a survivor. Every season has shaped me into someone new. And perhaps that’s what new beginnings really are—not forgetting where we’ve been, but faithfully stepping into who God is calling us to be today. If this season has changed you too, don’t spend all your energy trying to become the person you were before. There is beauty, purpose, and hope waiting in the person you are becoming. Sometimes the greatest new beginning is simply giving yourself permission to begin again as you are.

A New Beginning Reading Journey

     If today has you reflecting on fresh starts, I encourage you to spend a little time with these passages over the coming days:

• Isaiah 43:19 — “Behold, I am doing a new thing.”

• Psalm 138:8 — “The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me…” A reminder that God is still completing His work in us, even when life has taken unexpected turns.

• Lamentations 3:22–23 — His mercies are new every morning.

• Philippians 3:13–14 — Releasing what is behind and pressing toward what is ahead.

• 2 Corinthians 5:17 — We are a new creation in Christ.

• Romans 8 — A chapter filled with hope, purpose, and the assurance that God is working through every season of our lives.

     As I embrace this new season, I’m learning that beginning again isn’t about becoming who I used to be. It’s about trusting God to continue the beautiful work He has already begun. I may not recognize every step of the journey, but I trust the One who is directing it. The same God who carried me through yesterday is faithfully preparing me for tomorrow, and He is doing the same for you.