Moving Past Your Past
2 CORINTHIANS 12:10
I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.
One difference between a successful person living out his or her destiny and a person aimlessly checking off each day is this: A successful person views his or her life experiences—the good as well as the bad—through the lens of purpose. They realize that God is able to use all of it to fulfill His calling on their lives. An aimless person or bitter person cannot see the thread that connects life’s experiences to his or her own destiny. These individuals’ hearts may grow hard, their guilt may pile high, and they are often unable to move forward in life. How you manage your past experiences will have everything to do with your future. The key is to learn from your past, not live in it.
One of the easiest ways for Satan to keep you from moving forward is to get you to keep looking back. Are you the product of a dysfunctional family? God can use that for good. Did someone abuse or mistreat you? God can use that for good. Were you passed up for a promotion after years of dedicated service? God can use that for good. Has your marriage failed? Did your dreams come crashing down? Did you experience a betrayal from someone you trusted? Did you make some decisions as a teenager that are still affecting you two or three decades later? Whatever is in your past—the good as well as the bad—God will use it for good if you will let Him. Resist the tendency to grow hardhearted and bitter, and instead, choose a path that will help you move past your past. God wants to use the good and bad experiences of your life and to shape your destiny.
God, I don’t want my heart to grow hard from the painful things I’ve experienced. I don’t want to be bitter, cold, or jaded. Lord, help me to remember that You use it all for good when I let You… when I trust You. Help me to trust You more.
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