January is the perfect time of year to consider new beginnings/new life. I love when someone is being baptized and the pastor says "Buried with Christ in beautiful baptism, raised to walk in newness of life". I think a lot of the times we take for granted the opportunity Jesus gives us to be forgiven and start fresh. I don't mean we have to get re-baptized every time; I believe we can ask forgiveness and  the slate is wiped clean in order for us to have a fresh start. WOW! Have you ever spent time contemplating the magnitude of that act? It certainly doesn't happen in day to day living; for instance if you take out a loan or charge something on a credit card, you cannot just ask forgiveness and have the debt wiped away. You can't fight with someone or mistreat someone and expect them to just forget about it. You cannot commit a crime and expect to just say I'm sorry, please forgive me and have the consequences to just disappear.
However we can expect Jesus to forgive us, no matter what it is that we have done, The Lord will forgive us. It is next to impossible for me in my humanness to comprehend the depths of Jesus love and forgiveness for my sin. I cannot imagine how much he loves me or even why he loves me, because I fail him over and over again. But he just picks me up and dusts me off and sets me back on track again. And I just imagine the gentle smile on His face and His arms of love surrounding me!
Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.
 (Romans 6:4 NASB)