In the over 20 years I’ve been ministering to women, the thing they want to discuss the most is the past. They regret the things they did or didn't do. They regret marrying a particular man, or not marrying one. They regret the poor financial decisions they made. They regret the way they treated their children. One thing is consistent, they regret the things they did before they accepted Christ. It's difficult explaining to women with a past that everyone has a past, absolutely everyone. They believe that somehow their pasts are worse than anyone else's. Some of the women find it hard to believe God loves them or forgives them for their past sins.
Despite the abortion(s), fornication, homosexuality, drug or alcohol abuse, adultery, or other sins we’ve committed, God is faithful and just to forgive those sins and purify us from all unrighteousness if we confess our sins (1 John 1:9). God doesn’t want us walking in bondage to the sins of our pasts. He wants us to walk in liberty, forgetting those things which are behind (Philippians 3:13), freely serving others (Galatians 5:13).
The Bible is full of promises for you and me, women with a past, to help us walk in the liberty Christ came and died to give to us. These promises are precious. These promises are sure. God doesn’t renege on His promises like humans. His promises are “yea, and in Him Amen...” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Let’s take a look at some of the blessings God promises to women with a past.
Photo Credit: © Unsplash/Ernest Brillo
1. Your Past Is Not Who You Really Are
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold new things have come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Everyone has a past. Some of our pasts are further back than others, and some women are more secretive about their pasts than other women, but we all have a past nonetheless. You aren’t alone in having made poor choices or sinning. However, God has promised us that old things have passed away; all things have become new. We don’t have to stay stuck in our pasts. We can acknowledge them, repent of them, and move on.
2. Your Sin Isn’t Too Much for God
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)
By the time I accepted Christ, I'd committed so many sins, I had thought they were too innumerable for God to forgive. I had the hardest time accepting that God would forgive me for all the wrong I'd done. If you've ever felt that way, rest assured that God promises to forgive us if we repent of the things we’ve done. Along with God’s forgiveness is His cleansing. In other words, God purifies us. He takes away the stench, stigma, and residue of our pasts. We can rejoice in that.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/Erstudiostok
3. God Has a Purpose for Your Past
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
When you think back to everything you’ve endured, feelings of regret, shame, hatred, anger, or bitterness may rise up. I’m sure you’re wondering how any good can come from the things you’ve experienced. Yet God’s word promises that all things work together for our good. Please understand those things won't feel good, but they will work together for our good. For example, God can take your messy divorce and craft a beautiful message of healing. God will use your testing season and give you a testimony. God is in the business of giving us beauty for ashes (Isaiah 61:3).
4. You Were Loved before You Knew Christ
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
One of the biggest lies I believed as a new Christian was that I had to be perfect before God would save or accept me. John 3:16 says God gave His Son so that whoever believes in Jesus would have eternal life. Our pasts don’t hinder God’s personal invitation to spend eternity with the Lord. When we repent and place our faith in Christ, He guarantees our salvation.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images
5. God Made His Home in You
“I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever.” (John 14:16)
God promised us the Holy Spirit, who leads, comforts, and teaches us. He’s there for you, whispering to you, guiding you, enlightening the scriptures for you. Regardless of your past, the Holy Spirit abides within you forever.
6. Jesus Speaks for You
“Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.” (Romans 8:34)
Although we have people here on earth praying for us, their prayers don't compare to Jesus's prayers. The Bible teaches us that Jesus is currently sitting at God's right hand, interceding for us. Jesus is praying for you right now. That should give you the strength, comfort, and boldness to put your past in its place: in the past.
Photo Credit: © iStock/Getty Images Plus/arkira
7. You Are Stronger Than You Know
“But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.” (Romans 8:37)
We are more than conquerors through Christ. We are more powerful and capable than we know. Despite tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, or sword, the indwelling Spirit makes us more than conquerors. Women with pasts aren’t weak, helpless, or victims. We are conquerors simply because Jesus loves us.
8. You Are Free from the Enemy’s Influence
“Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)
I've met many women who have an incorrect understanding of the devil's influence over their lives. They believe the devil controls them, and they don't have any choice but to do the things he tempts them to do. However, God's word says that if we submit to God and resist (oppose, withstand) the devil, he will flee from us. Instead of cowering in the face of temptation, submit yourself to God, resist the temptation, and watch the devil flee from you.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/Robin Skjoldborg
9. You Have Gifts – Use Them
“But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.” (1 Corinthians 12:7)
God has given a spiritual gift to every born-again Believer. God gifted us to bring glory to Himself and to edify the church. Even a woman with a past is given a gift. God desires to use you, a woman with a past to build His church.
Don’t let shame, guilt, or embarrassment prevent you from using the gift(s) God gave you. Besides, who better to minister to women with a past than a woman with a past?
10. You Are a Daughter of the King
“So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith.” (Galatians 3:26)
Despite our pasts, we are God’s children. Our pasts didn’t prevent Him from adopting us, and our pasts don’t stop Him from accepting or embracing us. Further, our adoption gives us a new nature. We no longer have to claim our familial limitations. Thus, we can stop saying, "It runs in my family. This is how I was raised." We have a new family now, and we're being conformed into the image of Christ. Rejoice!
I pray these ten promises bless you as much as they have blessed me. As I've stated throughout this article, everybody has a past. However, our pasts don't predict our futures. We can look forward to the future with great expectation, confident that God has a purpose and plan for women like you and me, women with a past. So, come out from behind the shadows of the shame and guilt of your past, accept God’s forgiveness, and walk in the newness of life. You are blessed beyond measure.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/Fizkes
Originally published Tuesday, 14 July 2020.
