Articles
Looking Forward
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Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 3:13-14)
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A disordered and chaotic life can have several causes, but in many cases the dominant factor is a preoccupation with the past. When people become hung up on where they've been, they have no idea where they're going and, like trying to drive a car while facing the rear, their life ends up in a ditch.
In some cases, past traumas have paralyzed their minds. Maybe a rough childhood scarred them emotionally. Or perhaps some terrible tragedy destroyed their ability to see anything good in life. So they trudge through the rest of their lives bitter and angry over the hand fate has dealt them.
Others carry the burden of past failures--a failed marriage, a failed career, a failed investment. These defeats convince them that they have no value. They have demonstrated they can't perform; so why bother any more?
Some struggle with serious disappointments from their past. Their children didn't turn out the way they had hoped. A friend betrayed their trust. A business partner took advantage of their good will. So they retreat into shell, keeping everyone at arm's length, fearful of getting burned again.
In some cases, the past may not be negative at all. Some people are so infatuated with a long ago achievement that they have ceased trying to achieve another. By living off the faded glory of days gone by, they are squandering their present.
For all these people, a preoccupation with the past robs them of the will and the power to make the most of what remains of their time. Their lives are aimless and empty, not because they have no ability, but because they have no direction. Their past has blinded them to their future, and they are day-by-day transforming their future potential into a mediocre past.
When Paul said that he "forgot those things which are behind," he did not mean that he had no recollection of what had gone before. Rather, he did not dwell on the past. He refused to let the experiences of his past, whether good or bad, distract him from what lay before him. His future was a blank book, and he was determined to make the most of it.
Of course, that raises an important question: What is in our future? In the absence of God, Christ, and heaven, our future is, indeed, just as meaningless as our past. Perhaps that explains the epidemic of apathy that is dragging down our culture.
The past is done. Get over it, and press on to the future that God has prepared for you.
--David
