Brand New Beginning
"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past." (NIV) Isaiah 43:18
"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." (NIV) Philippians 3:13
Many at times, people support a particular football team because that team has a history of numerous victories likewise many parents send their wards to a particular school because that school has a history of good performances. Humans as we are, we only have the past to help us make decisions or choices for the future. Because the past is what we mostly turn to, many tend to live on past glories while their present keeps getting bad. Others are holding on to how people have hurt them in the past that it is difficult to forgive those people. Others look back to some years when they were vibrant Christians and they console themselves in the present saying, “I have done my part”.
It is important to take inventory of what happened in the past so that we can edge ourselves to fight forward towards achieving better results in the present and future. Isaiah 43:18 tells us not to dwell on the past and we must forget former things. There is a good reason for the good book to ask us not to dwell in the past: we cannot improve or correct or change the past but we have the chance to do something about the present. So please stop thinking about how badly last year treated you. It is gone, shake it off and look forward to how well this year will treat you. Dwelling in the past either makes us too comfortable to move towards improvement or discourages us to move forward. Glory not in the past, be optimistic about this year, hope and trust that this year will make you a better person than last year and work towards it.
Paul, in Philippians 3:13 tells us that he doesn’t consider himself to have taken hold of the prize Christ has for him, but rather forgets what is behind him and fights forward toward the goal. This should be every Christian’s attribute. We must keep fighting forward, never rest in doing our Master’s will until the day we finally are called to eternity. Let go of all things that keep sending you back to the past and fight forward towards the goal. God bless you.