Several years ago a prominant businessman gave a video interview and the host asked him to briefly summarize the secret of his success. The businessman paraphrased from Isaiah 43:18 “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.” He then gave an image of a rear view mirror in a car. He said he found it useless to keep looking back. He insisted that success involved continually moving forward, eyes fixed straight on the the path ahead. This is supported in many places in the Bible, especially in Philippians 3:13 “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead.” Keeping our minds and souls focused on the challenge ahead, on the goals to achieve, helps ease our minds when we stumble along the way. Errors can push us into feeling shameful about mistakes. However, mistakes are just mistakes. God encourages us to repent and move onto the next signpost in our lives. And shame can paralyse us for a long time. Paralysis means inaction, which means treading water and nothing gets accomplished. From a daily viewpoint, the old method of making lists is an excellent habit to cultivate; that way you know the items are getting ticked off the list and that you are moving forward. People now like making lists on their phones, but I believe there is a psychological benefit from using an old fashioned journal or daytimer to force you to put pen to paper. When a person writes using pen and paper, change happens from within and new life emerges in time.
Are You Moving Forward?
