S7E8 - The Joy of Forgetting

As humans we cannot help but carry our own amount of weights. Disappointments. Bad memories. Unfulfilled hopes. Critical words.

Jesus commented on the weight He places upon His followers:

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”(Matthew 11:28-30) The word yoke encompasses the idea of weights and balances. If you have every contemplated Proverbs you have encountered how God feels about "just" weights and balances, right?

Jamie Winship in Living Fearless articulates it this way: "When you picked up this book you brought all kinds of false beliefs with you. You can't help it; you're human. Anxiety, fear, guilt, shame - all the garbage came with you, and the enemy is attached to it. The enemy has no authority over you. But if you think he does, in that way he does. That's sort of his game. He asks you to give him permission to run your life, and you say yes by believing his deceptions: "I'm not good enough." "Nothing will ever change." "I am stuck in this situation, "God will never use me," "I am alone in this mess," and so on. The enemy is ruling your life, and you become what you believe." (pages 50-51)

Enter Paul, the disciple of Jesus, who carried much sad baggage of his own.

Philippians 3:7-14
       "But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith. This is so I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Paul continues with a  very clear picture of what we are to do with this baggage: 

       "Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

       Beautiful: Apparently there are things best moved beyond, and God alone gives this ability through the justice of forgiveness. So, Paul is saying:
- the things that I have lived my life to attain are ultimately secondary to knowing Jesus
- a life of true faith can bring power for this life and for the one to come
- this is a process with an ongoing promise thoughout
- what has been is over - and I am living for what will be

How can God give us any more as He carries our weights and encourages us toward our forever future? Magnificent. Easier spoken than received.

Forgetting and pressing on with you!
Dave & Burnadette

True Forgiveness Helping Us Breathe :)
A great book review on forgiveness

For a great thread study on the forgiveness subject type the word forgive into search.