Written by Pastor Jack Wellman– Phillips Brooks
Not Tripping Over the Past
We have a saying in our church. We don’t trip over what’s behind us because our past doesn’t determine our future. Our future is determined by God and not by our past. It’s too easy to drive in life with our eyes fixed on the rearview mirror, however that causes a danger because we’re not keeping our eyes on the road. Don’t let your past determine your future. If you have trusted in Christ, your future is already set! We can’t get rid of our past but we can use it for our future. We’re not what we ought to be, but thank God, we’re not what we used to be.
The Testimony of our Past
Years ago I was in prison but that is where God called me. Today, I work with prisoners and I can relate to them better because I’ve been where they are at. They know that I understand what it feels like to have your mother, your father (step-father for me), your brothers, sisters, family, friends, and co-workers never want to have anything to do with you. None of these men I visit in prison have anyone to visit them, even though we’re commanded to so do (Matt 25:36), so I remind them that if all they have is Christ, Christ is all they need. Use your past to point people to their future…a future in the New Jerusalem (Rev 21:1-2).
Nothing’s Ever Wasted
God never wastes suffering or things that happened in our past lives. He can use our past to help us make a future out of it. Our past is not really wasted because it caused us to come to Christ in the first place, didn’t it? Without our past, we’re not who we are today. God didn’t allow you to go through what you went through for nothing. All things will work out for our very best, good and bad (Rom 8:28).
Conclusion
The only way to get rid of your past is to make a future out of it and we know that God will waste nothing, however we had better not cause others to trip over what’s behind them or what’s behind us because we can use that as a powerful testimony to show others there is hope in Christ and that God never wastes suffering.
