“You can clutch the past so tightly to your chest that leaves your arms too full to embrace the present” ~ Jan Glidewell
Forget the past.
Live in the present.
Look to the future.
Learn from your mistakes and move forward.
Just get on with your life.
Don’t worry about the past; it can’t hurt you.
These are words that may seem helpful when you are on the giving end of
them. What about the receiving end? Letting your past go is truly easier said
than done. Whether it’s something unfair or unkind or hurtful that has been
done to us, or something we have done to ourselves, we are all looking for
ways to get out from under the hurts of our past .
The Bible tells story after story of people who had enormous hurts in their
pasts. Joseph was a shepherd and his father’s favorite son. Life was going
along well for him until his brothers sold him into slavery. He faced repeated
sexual temptation from his master’s wife and when he refused her advances,
she lied about him and had him thrown into prison.
The Bible says Job was a man of integrity and the richest man in his land. But
Satan set his sights on Job thinking he only loved God because he had never
had to face trials. God allowed Job to be tested to show his faithfulness. In
one day Job lost his children, his servants and all of his livestock. Shortly after,
his health was taken from him too and his friends blamed him for his losses,
saying it must be punishment for some sin he would not confess.
As a young shepherd boy, David fought the giant Goliath and won. As an
adult, he ruled as king of Israel. But he was also human, allowing his selfish-ness and lust get the best him. He was caught up in scandal when
he committed adultery with Bathsheba and arranged to have her husband murdered
in an attempt to cover it up.
None of them were perfect. None of them had bigger faith or shorter memories
or anything else to set them apart from you or me. They trusted God and His
faithfulness and through Him found ways to put their pasts behind them. Joseph
had every reason to be hopeless, yet he stayed positive and came out
ahead. While in prison, he was put in charge of many things because he didn’t
give up and remained faithful to God. Eventually he was made ruler of Egypt.
Job questioned and wrestled with God, yet in the end he praised God and was
blessed.
David’s troubles were his own doing. He tried to run away and cover up his mistakes
and his sins, but in the end, he confessed and restored his relationship
with God. Despite his past, David was considered a man after God’s own heart.
Life isn’t fair. It’s a cliché but it’s true. In this lifetime only God knows for certain
why some suffer abuse and others do not. Why some have plenty and others go
hungry. Why some people fall prey to addictions and others never do. Still everybody
has a past. No one gets through life without a few battle scars. Some
are small and we hardly notice them. Some are so huge we wonder if we will
ever recover.
God knows our past and our future. He offers forgiveness for our past, purpose
for the present and promise for the future.
It has been said that those who stare at the ness and lust get the best him. He was caught up in
scandal when he committed adultery with Bathsheba and arranged to have her husband murdered
in an attempt to cover it up.
God knows our past and our future. He offers forgiveness for our past, purpose
for the present and promise for the future.
It has been said that those who stare at theness and lust get the best him. He was caught up in scandal when
he committed adultery with Bathsheba and arranged to have her husband murdered
in an attempt to cover it up.
None of them were perfect. None of them had bigger faith or shorter memories
or anything else to set them apart from you or me. They trusted God and His
faithfulness and through Him found ways to put their pasts behind them. Joseph
had every reason to be hopeless, yet he stayed positive and came out
ahead. While in prison, he was put in charge of many things because he didn’t
give up and remained faithful to God. Eventually he was made ruler of Egypt.
Job questioned and wrestled with God, yet in the end he praised God and was
blessed.
_God knows our past and our future. He offers forgiveness for our past, purpose
for the present and promise for the future.
_It has been said that those who stare at the past have their backs turned to the
future.
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