Looking Back Part 2
There certainly are things worth forgetting. You know those middle of the night thoughts that rob you of sleep and joy. Words said or received that we are so much better off forgiving and forgetting. Oh, and praise the Lord, our sins which Christ's blood has covered. If we get stuck remembering those sins the enemy can hold us captive, trapped in the past, in a way that doesn't allow us to move forward in what God is calling us to do now and in the future.
Looking back on history holds great educational purpose. In the New Testament the Old Testmant is repeatedly shared to emphasize a point.
When Paul writes in Philppians 3:13
"But one thing I do:forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead..."
He is not teaching us to forget the past and the lessons we have learned, but more so to not let our mess ups, our sins, hinder us from seeing what God wants to do with us in the present and future. The enemy likes to trip us up making us feel unworthy.
Paul says, "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
We are not only to remember our personal experiences of seeing God at work, but we are to tell of his goodness to the next generation. And each generation is to seek the wise counsel of those older than we are for there is wisdom in their stories.
"Think about past generations. Ask your parents or any of your elders. They will tell you." Deuteronomy 32:7
May we find the greatest purpose in our looking back and seeing God's work throughout history is to allow those remembrances to draw us into a more intimate relationship with our heavenly Father.
Remember Romans 8:38-39
“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
The Song
“Ancient Words” Michael W Smith
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vmTkXNpwzs
