Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14).

Our past can be a hindrance or help in our moving toward the purposes God has for each of us. For some, the past has meant pain and heartache which requires grace not to let our past dictate our responses to the future. If we let our past make us a victim, then we have not entered into the grace that God has for each of us. If we live on memories of past successes and fail to raise our vision for new things, we again become victims of our past.

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland" (Isaiah 43:19). Our past should only be viewed for what we can learn from it. We must move forward and avoid viewing the negative or the positive for any more than what we can learn. Many a person has allowed their past to dictate their future. God is always about doing new things in our lives. He gives fresh revelation of His purposes in our lives. Do not live in the past. Do not hold onto bitterness that may hinder God's doing new and exciting things in your life. He turns our wastelands into streams of water to give life, not death.

How have you viewed your past? Has it hindered you in some areas of your life? Have you relied on past successes to dictate what you will do in the future? Put aside such thoughts and allow God to do a new thing in your life. Ask Him to help you see the new things He wants to do in and through you today.

"When your memories are bigger than your dreams, you're headed for the grave." - Author unknown