On New Year’s eve I was reading in one of my devotionals and it was addressing the issue of “looking back.” It was appropiate in that I was reflecting back on 2023 and the floating questions were there. Did I do all could do in some tough places? Did I fail to do what I should have in some instances? You get the point. We’ve all been there and there is a temptation to spend too much time remembering our “yesterdays.” And that often results in a rising level of anxiety that impacts us going forward.
Let me share with you some thoughts about this issue of “looking back” and how it can impact us going forward in 2024…
Isa 52:12 For you shall not go out in haste, and you shall not go in flight, for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. ESV
As we go forth into the coming year, let it not be in the haste of impertuous, unremembering delight, nor with the flight of impulsive thoughtlessness, but with the patient power of knowing that the God of Israel will go before us. Our yesterdays present irreparable things to us; it is true that we have lost opportunities which will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Let the past sleep, but let it sleep on the bosom of Christ. Leave the irreparable past in His hands, and step out into the irresistible future with Him. Oswald Chambers
And that leads me back to one of the key life verses God has over a long time permanently imprinted on my heart …
Matt 6:34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. ESV
We truly have to live one day at a time with our focus on What The Spirit Is Saying to us about what we are to focus on that relates to drawing ever closer to Him … ever closer to Spiritual Maturity.
Our prayers are with you for the challenge and the joy of living that journey in your Walk With God in 2024. Be encouraged – be ready – the day of His return is ever so close!
God Bless you and yours
Tom