Originally published Friday, 17 May 2013.
Your past does not determine your future.
You are more than the mistakes you’ve made.
You have been forgiven.
You have been forgiven.
You have been FORGIVEN.
I know, at least from a personal standpoint, that when the devil really wants to get inside my head, he is good at making me feel as if my past is too bad, too dirty, too messy, too imperfect to work with.
So, my thoughts start to swirl around in my head and my once hopeful heart starts to sink.
You see, because if Satan can make us feel as if we aren’t good enough, or pretty enough, or smart enough, or talented enough, or worth ENOUGH, he can keep us stagnant.
Because when you feel hopeless, you turn around.
You quit moving forward.
You forget how far you’ve come and think about how much longer you have to travel.
Can I let you in on something?
YOU ARE SO MESSED UP.
You have made a lot of mistakes.
Your imperfections are obvious.
BUT…
Jesus.
He is the perfect rescuer.
The author of our faith and the fixer of our messes.
He turns the bad into good and He delights in our weakness.
My friend, if your past was not messy, then I would say you have sat on your couch all day and not tried to go anywhere, do anything or try anything difficult.
Failure is an opportunity to try something again.
Satan likes to make you think it is defeat but you KNOW better!
Don’t let his mind games or manipulative tricks work your head into a web of lies and make you think that you are just too messed up to save.
But, Jesus.
The very person of grace, the exact definition of everything GOOD we don’t deserve all wrapped up into the fingers of the One who made you.
Let your past spur you forward, not make you stagnant.
Let your mistakes remind you of your dependence in Him, not make you feel defeated.
Listen- we all fall off of our bikes now and again.
We become a little cocky after doing a few tricks and we stop looking up at our teacher.
We think we are self-reliant and we bust it.
We mess up. Our knees are skinned and the pain is real.
But that is when our teacher loves to step in and say, “Hey, look at me. There you go, pedal slowly.
I got you.
I know you fell before but that was because you took your eyes off me.
Keep going.
TRUST me.
I will keep you safe.”
This is the thing: Falling off doesn’t mean we get to settle for keeping the training wheels on for the rest of our lives.
Rough analogy, but you see what I mean.
Life was meant to live and live to the fullest.
And you simply can’t do that when you’re afraid to push the pedals.
Keep your eyes on your teacher.
We all have bloody knees. So take heart and pedal forward
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” -Isaiah 43:18-19
SHARE
