“While the past will always be a part of you it doesn’t mean you have to live there or bring it with you. Let memories make you strong, but let go so you can grow and move on.” ~ Eugene Nathaniel Butler
The past is a wonderful thing. It has shaped us. It has cajoled us. It has encouraged us. It has made us who we are today.
Yet, for some people, the past has such a firm grip on them that they cannot move forward. They are not moving forward because they are stuck in their past. Perhaps it is because of an inordinate amount of guilt. Perhaps it is because of overwhelming sadness. Perhaps it is because of a terribly traumatic event. Something in the past has put its claws into a person and kept that person from growing emotionally, psychologically, and/or spiritually.
There is nothing in our past — let me repeat that and shout it out: THERE IS NOTHING IN OUR PAST — from which Jesus cannot release us. There is nothing we have done that Jesus will not forgive. There is nothing that has happened to us that Jesus cannot heal.
When we live in the past, we forget about the great love and mercy of our God. When we live in the past, we refuse to allow God to intervene in our lives and to heal us. When we live in our past, we become utterly lost.
The word past means that something is over. Let it be over.
If there is something hanging over your head, let it be over. If there is something that fills you with incredible guilt and shame, let it be over. If there is something that keeps you angry at another, let it be over. If there is something keeping you from God’s wondrous love, let it be over. It’s just not worth it to hold on to it.
Live in the present moment. Live in today and for the promise of tomorrow. Let yourself learn from the mistakes of the past but do not condemn yourself or keep yourself from being truly present to others today.
FAITH ACTION: If something in your past has too strong a hold on you, ask God to give you the grace and courage that you need to let it go and move on with your life.