“If Paul had not learned how to deal with his own past, wrote Bob Gass, “he never would have written one of the thirteen best sellers we now call “epistles” or founded a church that would last for two thousand years. This then is the man who writes,” “Of course, my friends, I really do not think that I have already won it; the one thing I do, however, is to forget what is behind me and do my best to reach what is ahead. So I run straight toward the goal in order to win the prize, which is God’s call through Christ Jesus to the life above.” (Phil 3:13-14 GNT).
If we all decide to allow the past to tie us down, the world will come to a grinding halt. As long as you are still alive God is more interested in your future. When the thief on the cross asked Jesus to bring him into His Kingdom, the Lord was quick to inform him that that very day he will be with Him in Paradise. Despite the unjust punishment Jesus was bearing on the cross, he did not begin to accuse and remind the thief of his past, he gave him a clean bill of health. No matter how far you have gone our God who gives us chances to continue our life anew will always receive us with a rich welcome. John Newton was a sailor who clashed and fought with his father and went to jail. He lived a life of immorality. He was a slave driver used to wild living, but he met a storm that brought him to his knees and had to acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. This same John Newton later wrote the popular hymn, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!” written on his tombstone is a glaring testimony of a man who buried his past and did exploits henceforth for the Lord: “John Newton Clark, once an infidel and Liberine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was by the rich mercy of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned and appointed to preach the faith he long labored to destroy.”
God’s judgment hung over Jericho. Everyone was condemned to die, one woman however decided to change the course of history by choosing to identify with God’s people. She rose up and said no to ungodliness and worldly passions. Rehab was a prominent prostitute in the city of Jericho, this is evident by the fact that her house was by the city wall. But when she came and confessed her willingness to be part of the Israelite community, she was welcomed. She was not rejected. Later on in the roll call of the genealogy of Christ she stands still conspicuous. (Mat. 1:5).
Guilt if allowed to thrive can keep us down without thinking of the prospects of moving ahead. Steve Farrar in his book “Finishing Strong.” Wrote about the circus elephant: “When the elephants are just babies, the trainer puts a shackle around one of their legs, with a chain attached to a stake. These babies are maybe three to four hundred pounds at best, and they will try to get away from the chain. But they can’t. But the strange thing is that massive adult elephants which may weigh a couple of tons apiece can be held by the very same shackle as the one used on the youngsters. The adult elephant remembers how he was staked up as a baby and couldn’t get away. That’s how a ten-pound stake can hold down a two-ton elephant. Some of us have found ourselves tied to our past just like a circus elephant chained to a stake. This is one of the primary tools and schemes of the enemy to defeat Christians and to keep us from finishing strong.” Instead of lamenting over the loss or pain of the past, remember the examples set in the Bible of people who were able to break off from the bondage of guilt and the past. The prodigal son took a bold decision: “When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.”’ Luke 15:17-19. Be sure that as you rise up, a rich welcome of restoration awaits you!
Another story worth sharing to illustrate how the past and bitter heart can prevent us from entering into a new phase of life is the story of a woman who died of heartbreak. This woman had a husband whom she picked from the gutters, brushed him up and gave him sound education. The woman also helped the husband to get a well paid job. In the spirit of love, she used her resources to acquire landed property, built houses and purchased shares in the name and signature of her husband. Their marriage was blessed with an only daughter. Later on out of lust and the quest for a male child, the husband left her and married another woman whom he fled abroad with. When the woman tried to possess her husband’s estates she could not, due to legal constraints. Out of deep sorrow and bitterness this woman lived all her life in seclusion. She often advised ladies against marriage and often said all men were the same. She passed through poverty and was unable to pay her bills. After many years had passed, the husband fell ill and died. Before he died he wrote a letter to his former wife asking for forgiveness and returned all her estates to her. When the letter delivered through a courier got to the woman, she refused to open it. According to her she did not want anything that would remind her of the “good for nothing hopelessly cruel man.” Yet she was in desperate need to pay her bills and avert being thrown out by her landlord. Unfortunately this woman died later of heart attack. While her room was cleared, her relatives saw the big envelope sent by her former husband, opened it and saw the documents of all her houses and landed property. Nursing your past can keep you in perpetual wreck.
