Let the Past, Be the Past!

Isaiah 43:18-19 English Standard Version (ESV)

18 “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. 19 Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Philippians 3:13-14 English Standard Version (ESV)

13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind an

d straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

This year has been such a challenge to leave the past in the past, and not because of myself necessarily. People have the tendency to try to throw your past in your face. Too often we get caught up in the words of others, and allow them to make us feel down or get stuck in the past. I have had far too many people try to get me to relive moments of my life that were not necessarily the greatest memories.

The enemy will do everything in his power to keep you from moving forward. He will play games on your mind to make you think that you are doing something wrong by moving ahead. Don’t give the enemy that power over you! Oh, and for clarification purposes, just because someone makes the choice to move ahead, that doesn’t mean that they are free from pain, or that they don’t care anymore. Moving on, just means they have decided not to allow what has happened in the past to hinder what’s in store for them today as well as in their future.

If you get stuck on the past and what should have, could have, or did not, then you are missing out on what’s in store for you. One thing about the past is that we can’t go back and change it. It all happened just the way God wanted it to. So stop focusing on what could have been different. Give yourself a decent moment to reflect on what you have learned, take your experience and add it to your box of wisdom that the good Lord has allowed for you to gain because of it, and move on. You only get one body, one life, one opportunity to live life to the fullest. Be good to yourself, and don’t be afraid to enjoy life.

In Genesis 19:26, Lot’s wife was disobedient. God tried to spare their lives by sending two angels to warn Lot and his family. As a result, Lot’s wife turned into a pillar of salt. See, that’s the problem with us sometimes. We insist on looking back at something God is clearly trying to save us from. Why go back, when he has clearly given us an escape. If God wanted us to stay in that place, he would have made a way for it to be. When we get stuck trying to go back to what God is trying to take us out of, we forfeit our blessings. Stop looking back! What’s done is done. Move on and seek Him for what you need to do to be ready for what’s next.