"Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it on my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13-14 ESV
In life we have a choice, we can either forge on ahead and press on or we can drop where we stand. We have to forget what is behind us - whether it is good or bad, whether anything made any sense at all , yesterday is done and gone. That is one of the things that I have had the hardest thing learning in my life. To realize that no matter what happened yesterday - even if it was devastating - you have to learn to let it go. Focusing on yesterday will not prepare you for tomorrow.
We can't replay the events that have led us to where we are nor can we change what has occurred. We want to think that we can, we wish we could, often out of a sense of guilt or loss for whatever has happened in our lives. It probably explains why so many popular movies have dealt with the subject of going back to fix what was broken, movies like Back To The Future, Mr. Destiny, or Sliding Doors. But the apostle Paul recognized that we are just not going to be able to change the past. And if anyone would want to change his past it was Paul.
And that is why Paul makes the only rational decision that he can make and offers the same to us as well. Paul forgets the past and presses on. Again I say, if anyone could hang on to the past - decisions that were made, people who wronged him - it would have been Paul. After he was converted on the road to Damascus, he became hunted and persecuted with the same zeal with which he hunted and persecuted Christ's followers. Now Paul followed Christ and served the believers called by Christ to touch the world. Time and time again Paul was wrongfully imprisoned and beaten neat death for his new life, witness, and his unwavering testimony of what Christ had done in his life.
Now comes the really hard question. Where are you in your journey with Christ? Are you stuck in the past, holding on to regrets, remorse, or feelings of guilt for the things that you did or didn't do? Are you still holding on to grudges against someone for something they did or that you perceive that they did to you?
The answer: Forget IT! Press on to reach the heavenly prize of a continuing relationship with Jesus Christ. Release your past by giving it over to Him - that's why He made the sacrifice in the first place.
In life we have a choice, we can either forge on ahead and press on or we can drop where we stand. We have to forget what is behind us - whether it is good or bad, whether anything made any sense at all , yesterday is done and gone. That is one of the things that I have had the hardest thing learning in my life. To realize that no matter what happened yesterday - even if it was devastating - you have to learn to let it go. Focusing on yesterday will not prepare you for tomorrow.
We can't replay the events that have led us to where we are nor can we change what has occurred. We want to think that we can, we wish we could, often out of a sense of guilt or loss for whatever has happened in our lives. It probably explains why so many popular movies have dealt with the subject of going back to fix what was broken, movies like Back To The Future, Mr. Destiny, or Sliding Doors. But the apostle Paul recognized that we are just not going to be able to change the past. And if anyone would want to change his past it was Paul.
And that is why Paul makes the only rational decision that he can make and offers the same to us as well. Paul forgets the past and presses on. Again I say, if anyone could hang on to the past - decisions that were made, people who wronged him - it would have been Paul. After he was converted on the road to Damascus, he became hunted and persecuted with the same zeal with which he hunted and persecuted Christ's followers. Now Paul followed Christ and served the believers called by Christ to touch the world. Time and time again Paul was wrongfully imprisoned and beaten neat death for his new life, witness, and his unwavering testimony of what Christ had done in his life.
Now comes the really hard question. Where are you in your journey with Christ? Are you stuck in the past, holding on to regrets, remorse, or feelings of guilt for the things that you did or didn't do? Are you still holding on to grudges against someone for something they did or that you perceive that they did to you?
The answer: Forget IT! Press on to reach the heavenly prize of a continuing relationship with Jesus Christ. Release your past by giving it over to Him - that's why He made the sacrifice in the first place.
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