I must not allow regrets and wounds of my past to prevent me from walking forward in Christ, but I must instead allow the memory of them to point my heart back to the one who has redeemed and forgiven me.
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Scripture
Ephesians 2:11-13
11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands—12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
Observation
Paul is speaking to the believers in Ephesus, and instructs them to ‘remember’ that they were at one time separated from Christ, and not members of the covenant or recipients of the promise. But the remembrance of their sin-issue was to point their attention back to the redeeming power of Jesus, which restored them to relationship with the Father and made them heirs of the promise.
Application
The past can be an anchor or a rudder. It can either lock me immovably in place and prevent forward progress, or it can allow me to navigate with clarity. If I spend my days staring with regret at the past, grieving missed opportunities and mistakes that I’ve made, then I cannot walk with confidence in my present. Conversely- if I put the past completely out of my mind, I’m unlikely to learn from it. The wise old saying tells me that “those who do not remember the past, are doomed to repeat it”.
Christ wants me to find a balance somewhere between the two: I must not allow regrets and wounds of my past to prevent me from walking forward in Christ, but I must instead allow the memory of them to point my heart back to the one who has redeemed and forgiven me.
This week, I choose to remember my past. I choose to remember the mistakes I’ve made, and the painful seasons I’ve lived through. I choose to let those memories point me back to the Savior, because He has redeemed me and I want His story to be told through my life.
Prayer
God, thank you for saving me! Thank you for restoring me to relationship with you, and for redeeming my most painful mistakes and seasons! Help me to not become frozen in the past, but may I always allow my memories and mistakes to point me back to the one who has saved me and who will never let me down. May your redemption story be told through my life–not only through the good seasons, but also through the tough times.
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