Moving On

MOVING ON!
“2008 will be the year of the “best of times and the worst of times.” For those who do not take the past with them it will become the best of times. For those who live in the past, and take it with them it could be the worst of times. Give the Lord your future, you could be a Gideon.” (John Paul Jackson)
This year it is time to break off the shackles of your past and step into the future and plans that God has for you. God has too much planned for you to let you waste your time on your past. Your yesterday does not have to be your tomorrow!

“ ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.’ “ (Jeremiah 29:11)

MONUMENTS TO MISTAKES

Too often we make monuments to the disappointments and mistakes in our lives. We continually visit them and meditate on the what ifs, the could have beens and the whys. If we let it, our past will derail our future. We can intentionally or unintentionally let our hurt, disappointments or injustices, sabotage the plans and purposes that God has for us today. Don’t let the wonderful things that God has for you pass you by because you are too focused on yesterday. Looking back is saying “tomorrow will be like today, because today is like yesterday.”

CROSSROADS

We have a choice, we can either spend our time reacting to the past or responding to the vision that God has placed in front of us. George Orwell once said “Who controls the past controls the future, who controls the present controls the past”. When we live under yesterday’s mistakes and condemnation we keep the focus on ourselves and not on God. When we make our lives about our past, we put ourselves in control. When it is about our future – God is in control. Perhaps you asked someone out and they said no – don’t interpret that into the next time you ask someone out the answer will be the same. Maybe you were turned down for a job – don’t let that impact your confidence. Or perhaps someone said you wouldn’t amount to anything – don’t let that stop you. Sure, there are some things that need working on – but we need to anchor our faith in God and not in the facts from our past.

“I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13)

LETTING GO

Gardeners understand the process of “de-heading”. To encourage new buds to come forth, old and dead blooms are cut off. We need to treat our past in the same way. There are things in our lives that we need to let go of. That old relationship that springs to mind every time you meet someone new, the criticism that perhaps you received from a parent or teacher that echoes in your mind, or the failure that occurred when you tried something new that holds you back when other opportunities come up. We need to remove them from our minds so that we can let the new things come forth.

We can also hold onto the past through unforgiveness. It was once said that “forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.” Forgiving someone of a past hurt enables us to move more freely into the future. Holding on to the resentment or unforgiveness keeps us tied to our past and restricts God being able to move on our behalf in that area. Letting go means God can respond with justice on our behalf.

THE OVERCOMERS

God does not consult your past to determine your future. Proof of this is in His Word. Look at Paul – as Saul he persecuted and oversaw the death of many Christians, yet he did not look back and instead became a passionate evangelist and teacher. Yes he had a past, but he knew he was acceptable to God through Christ and that is where he put his confidence.

“Brothers I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for what God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14)

Sarah, Abraham’s wife, laughed at God over His promise that she would have a baby. In other words she mocked God! Yet in Hebrews she is remembered as a woman of great faith. The wonderful thing about God is that He looks at us in our finished state!

“By faith Abraham, even though he was past age – and Sarah herself was barren – was enabled to become a father because he considered Him faithful who had made the promise.” (Hebrews 11:11)

Your past is not your future. We need to continually realign ourselves with God and what His Word says about us and His thoughts towards us. God is always moving - He always looking forward.

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:18-19)

Remember - no matter your past - God’s mercies are new every morning! “Whatever your past has been, you have a spotless future.” (Anon)

As Thomas Jefferson once said “I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past.” Don’t let 2008, the year of New Beginnings be cluttered by yesterday. Your past, no matter how good or bad is over – it is no longer in existence! Press on into what God has for you today and tomorrow!!!

Living with a Heart of Forgiveness

It was once said that “He who cannot forgive others breaks the bridge over which he himself must pass.” Forgiving those who have hurt or offended us is a tough challenge. The key is to cultivate a heart that carries with it a reservoir of forgiveness. We are exhorted by God to forgive:

“Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” (Colossians 3:13)

Focus on how much you have been forgiven
Think on how much God has forgiven you, and little we have done to deserve His forgiveness. Meditating on God’s mercy towards us helps us nurture mercy towards others.

Learn to forget
Sometimes the biggest hindrance to forgiving is that we continue to remember the offense and therefore we keep it alive, even if we have purposed in our heart to forgive. Forgetting is a choice. Every time we begin to replay the hurt or the offense in our minds we stir up the pain again. So actively seek to think or meditate on something else - read the Bible, listen to worship music. Train your mind to not dwell on the hurt, intentionally train your mind to disregard the offense.

Trust God
Know in your spirit that God is just. Our God loves justice, and we need to leave it to Him to make everything right (See Isaiah 61:7-8). It is not up to us to meter judgment on the person who has hurt us.

Push past your feelings
Our soul will want to remind us of the hurt and injustice that we have suffered through our emotions – through anger, bitterness and frustration. We cannot allow ourselves to follow our feelings. We need to push past these feelings and let them go.

Refuse to keep score
Don’t keep track of how many times a person has offended, hurt or let you down. The Bible says that we are not to keep a record of wrong (1 Corinthians 13:5).

Bless your enemies
Pray for those who have hurt you. Speak well of them and look for ways to do good things for them. Don’t talk unkindly or gossip about them. Blessing our enemies brings us healing. It is hard to stay angry at a person that you are endeavouring to bless at the same time. It is the opposite response to what the enemy wants and it enables God to use the situation for our good.