I had to smile as I thought about what John Maxwell wrote in his book, "Today Matters", and I quote: "2004 ended on December 31, 2004…last year and yesterday ended that night." Well guess what my beloved? You can say the same thing about the year 2007…it ended on December 31, 2007, which means last year and yesterday ended that night. Which also means that 2007 or the past is over. It's gone! You've walked out of last year and yesterday and what was the future is now today.
With all of this in mind, allow me to suggest a strategy to help you to start out with an absolute clean slate in the year "2-0-0-8".
1. Open your Bible to Philippians 3:13-14 and read both verses.
2. Now take the time to listen to some great instruction given by the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul:
Paul says it is more than time to come to the conclusion that 2007 brought with it the good, the bad, and the ugly. And wisdom would dictate that you admit that you still don't understand everything that happened; and yes, you're absolutely right, some of the things that happened weren't really fair and they were totally embarrassing and at times, flat painful. And if you so decide, you could stay angry and hurt about it all but again, wisdom would dictate that you move on. So how does a person move on?
If you're saved, and what you did was sin; agree with God that it was sin, confess it, and ask God to forgive you (I John 1:9). And since His Word promises that He has forgiven you, it is more than time for you to receive the forgiveness, forgive everyone that hurt you, and begin to rejoice in the fact that you've been washed, cleansed, and made whole again!
Okay, we've dealt with part one, so it is time to move to part two. Part two is fun, this is where you'll take the time to bask in and reminisce about all the success and great things that happened; and of course, give God praise and thanksgiving for how well He took care of you. Rejoice and get a great chuckle out of the fact that God loves you so much that He even answered prayers that you didn't pray and gave you things that you didn't even know you needed! What a God…Amen!
And now that we've looked at the good, the bad, and the ugly, the Apostle Paul commands you to "forget those things, which are left behind, and reach forth unto those things which are before." In other words, don't allow yourself to be absorbed by anything that went on in the past so you'll be able to move forward and into the future that God has planned for you.
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