Hello my precious and positive friends. I look forward to seeing you next week at the Positive Woman Connection Bible study.  Please be sure to RSVP if you have not already done so.  We will meet on Oct 26 at Prestonwood Country Club 12 – 1. and On Wednesday, Oct 27 at Cottonwood Creek, 12 – 1.  Our topic this month is “Discovering who you are in Christ.”   See you soon. 

Here’s a devotional thought about the importance of moving forward from the past:

Looking forward to what God has in store can be difficult at times, especially when we have experienced pain or feel as though we are in a rut. Yet, it is important for us take small steps forward with our eyes looking to the Lord to guides us.  We must deliberately take our focus off past hurts and mistakes. Thoughts and reminders of your pain or disappointment or how things could have been may pop into your head now and then, but it’s time to leave the regrets behind and turn your eyes toward what God is planning for the rest of your life.

The apostle Paul offers us a good example. He could have chosen to live in his past, wallowing in regret about his former years before he knew Christ, but he chose to look forward. Here’s what he said to the Philippians: “I focus on this one thing; Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.”9

Whether you are dealing with a divorce or an injury or a loss, you have a choice whether you will dwell on what could have been and your past dreams, or move forward to what is next. One talent we have as women is to replay the “I’m Hurt” tape over and over in our minds. They hurt my feelings. He ruined my life. She was rude to me. God didn’t listen to me. Once you have grieved a hurt or loss, it is time to stop reliving it and playing back the video over and over in your mind. Again this requires forgiveness and strength to move on. We have a loving God who is able to give us the strength to forgive. Seek his help when you just can’t get to the place of forgiveness, and remember forgiveness is not inviting a person to walk all over you.  Sometimes we must set wise boundaries. Forgiveness is releasing the right to hold something over another person.  Let it go.

The only time Scripture tells us to look back is when we are remembering what God has done. The Israelites were told to set up markers and memorials to remember what God had brought them through. We, too, must reflect on God’s goodness and recognize all he has done, instead of reflecting on our past life and wishing it were still there. To passionately live the life we didn’t plan, we must turn our eyes upward instead of backward in order to go forward.

This blog is an excerpt from my book Thrive, Don’t Simply Survive (Simon and Schuster).