My favorite part of a painting is the beginning. It’s fun to see a face form on canvas—kind of like meeting a person for the first time.

My recent painting in process, The Invitation, captivates me with those mystical eyes that peer into my soul as if extending an invitation.

They compel me to draw near, to connect with what empowered me to paint those eyes. Eyes that are unfinished and evolving, like my understanding of spiritual things.

Fresh starts entice me to explore the unknown—a journey that if I follow, I have no idea where I will end up. Yet one I cannot resist.

Fresh starts fascinate me. Maybe it’s the excitement of the remake, the anticipation of something better, the unexpected impulse to try again.

Sure, the downside is they usually follow unwelcomed failure or the death of a dream or a heart-wrenching loss.

But fresh starts build character and character is something no one can take away from you.

This line from Rudyard Kipling’s poem “If,” a coming of age message to his son, has encouraged me to go after fresh starts:

“Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

    And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools.”

Fresh starts often defy all reason, silencing the mind while calling the spirit forth.

When you’re offered a fresh start, none of your questions seem to matter in that moment except moving towards someone or something good and pure and promising.

The invitation to a fresh start feels like someone extends a hand and beckons you to get out of the boat and walk.

Whether or not you do is up to you.

Oceans by Hillsong puts the feeling in musical form.