"Remember Ye Not the Former Things"

As we stand on the threshold of another new year, some look back wistfully at the past year. Most of us would probably say the year has been one of mixed blessings; some successes interlaced with some failures. For others, it was a year of "what might have been." There are things we wished we had done differently, things we probably regretted saying and doing. Regardless of where we direct our thoughts, one thing is clear - we cannot go back in time and change anything that was or was not done.

In his reflection on time, American poet and educator Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) wrote, “Look not mournfully into the past. It comes not back again. Wisely improve the present. It is thine. Go forth to meet the shadowy future, without fear." However, centuries before, words to the same effect were spoken by the prophet Isaiah to the nation of Israel, "Thus saith the LORD . . . Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert" (Isaiah 43:16a, 18-19, KJV). There is something about focusing on the past that can often leave us in a position of complacency, and some of us can attest to that. We can become thoroughly satisfied with our successes, or mentally and emotionally crippled by our failures. We can spend so much time looking backward that we fail to move forward timely and effectively. There is a reason the rearview mirrors in cars are so small relative to the windshield. We glance back every now and again but we look in front. There are important lessons we can learn from our experiences and we should learn them, but let us not build tents around those experiences.

What are some of the things God wants us to forget? Our past losses, sorrows and sufferings; associations and traditions that hindered His working in our lives; the focus on self; past accomplishments and achievements that would distract us from offering glory to Him; and our failures, to name a few. As we begin the new year, God stands poised yet again to do new things that shall spring forth. If 2011 has been a year of failure and broken dreams, 2012 can be the opposite; if it was successful, there are more victories to be celebrated. We serve an awesome God to whom nothing is impossible (Jeremiah 32:26-27; Matthew 19:26).

Let us take God at His Word. Forgetting the former things and looking forward to the “new thing” He will be doing in our heart and lives. It is my prayer that He surprises us in ways far beyond anything we could ever ask or think (Ephesians 3:20), and I pray that especially for you and yours for this New Year. He is faithful that promised (Hebrews 10:23).