Bible Stories about New Beginnings

Isn’t it crazy how you may have known a Bible verse or story for years and read it multiple times, but one day it suddenly comes alive to you?  This happened to me with the story of Naomi and Ruth and before I knew it, I was surrounded by Bible stories about new beginnings!

Let me back up and tell you a little about the place of life I was in. I had lost my beautiful 8-year-old daughter in an accident a year before.  I was afraid of the future and longing for the past, back to the time when my family was whole and the pain of the world had not broken us.  

I knew God was nudging me (us) forward and encouraging us to heal from the hurt and embrace life again.  I was resisting. 

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Bible Stories about New Beginnings

Do you know the story of Naomi?  She lived during a time when Canaan had a terrible drought.  She traveled with her husband and two sons to a foreign country in the hope of making a better life for her family.  Life remained full of turmoil for Naomi when her husband and both of her sons die. She is alone in a strange land and I can bet she was sure God had abandoned her.

She decides to return to her homeland.  She has two daughters-in-law, both of which are faithful and love her dearly.  She convinces one to return to her father’s house and remarry. Ruth refuses to return, giving us some of the most beautiful verses of dedication and love in our study of Bible stories about new beginnings.

“Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me.”  (Ruth 1:16-17 NKJV).

God was abundant in mercy and love that He had given Ruth to Naomi.  The two of them traveled to Naomi’s homeland and while many welcomed Naomi home, you can hear the pain in her voice when she replies:

“Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty, has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?”  (Ruth 1:20-21).

However, God has a plan and He arranges for Ruth to catch the eye of Boaz whom she marries and they welcome into the world a son.  The women gather around Naomi and you can hear in their rejoicing that they believe God has given Naomi a new beginning.

“Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel! 15 And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him.” 16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to him. 17 Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “There is a son born to Naomi.” And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.  (Ruth 4:14-17).

What a beautiful story!  I tear up every time I read it.  God can make beauty from ashes. Naomi is living proof.

Examples of New Beginnings in the Bible

The Bible is full of stories about new beginnings and verses about starting new.  God knows that living under the curse of a fallen world is not easy for us. He understands that we fall down and long to begin again.  

He provides us encouragement and hope through His word.  A few other examples of new beginnings in the Bible are:

• Noah and the flood.
• The story of Jacob, deceiving his brother and fleeing from his wrath.  He finds himself married to two young women and the father of 13 children.  
• God allows Job to be tested by Satan and loses his family, his health, and all of his wealth.  When the horrible trial is over, God restores to Job all that he had “Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning”  (Job 42:12).
• The Children of Judah returning from captivity and rebuilding Jerusalem and the temple.

Bible Verses about Starting New

I know there are many more Bible stories about new beginnings, but let’s turn our attention to Bible verses about starting new and how we can apply them to our lives.

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11).

God longs to give us a future.  Not one full of pain and heartache, but one full of love and peace.  When life brings us sickness, pain, anxiety, and depression, we can be confident that God is in our corner.  He has plans for a future for us and he’s not going to give up.

“Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23).

When we’ve made poor choices and “messed up” we can be certain that He does not want us to remain in our mistake.  He wants us to begin again. He longs for us to come to Him in repentance and shower us with His love and forgiveness.

“Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:18-19).

Have you ever held onto the past so tightly that you cannot embrace the future?  This is your hope!  God will give you a new beginning.  He will provide a place for you when you see nothing but wilderness and desert.

“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.”  (Isaiah 65:17).

Bible stories about new beginnings should start with the earth waiting for her redemption. The curse has held her captive for thousands of years and we know that all creation cries out to be restored (Romans 8:22) but we know that it is coming!

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also, there was no more sea. 2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” 5 Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.”  (Revelation 21:1-5).

These are my favorite Bible verses about starting new.  They are filled with such hope. God has planned for the pain and suffering of this world to pass away.  He will give us a new beginning and we will dwell through eternity with our Creator surrounded by His light.

What Do New Beginnings Mean?

When we put all of this together, we can come away with one word:

Hope.

God has provided us with Bible stories and verses about new beginnings to give us hope and hope does not disappoint.

If you are at a place of new beginnings, rest in hope!

**Verses used in this post were taken from the New Kings Jame Version. You can read my Bible citation page here.