Keep going

It is snowing and it is cold. It is also slippery and a car drives right behind me. He makes me nervous, so I keep looking in my rear mirror. So much that I lose focus and the car slippers a bit to the side. Quickly, I stir back and realize that instead of focusing so much on what is happening behind me, it is better to focus on what is happening in front of me. The car takes over and we get home. At home, I read my Bible:

But Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back [to the things left behind] is fit for the kingdom of God." Luke 9:62 - Bible Gateway

My thoughts go back to what happened when I drove my car. It is true. If you keep looking back or get nervous about people overtaking you, mistakes from the past, pain, and life that happened up until this moment, you could get into an accident. It reminds me of the story in the Bible of Lots' wife. While God told them to run away from their city because He was going to deal with it and not look back, she looked back, and it did not end well.

"But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. " Genesis 19:26-30 NIV

I think about my own life. How often do I stress out because of things that happened in the past? How often do I get nervous and salty because of other people or things that God should deal with? In 2024, I broke my leg, on this day, 5th January. Just after I broke it, I read "A setback is a set-up for a comeback". It gave me hope and courage to learn to walk again, to not give up, and to feel sorry for myself. Even though I did at times, I knew something good was coming out of this. After about 9 months, God opened up the door for me to go to South Africa to do a Firecamp from Cfan. Walking up the stairs, without sticks, help, or a wheelchair, receiving my certificate of completing the Firecamp I knew: This is the comeback!

How different could the lives of Lots' wife and family be if she did not look back? How different could your and my lives be if we focused on what lies in front of us, rather than what lies behind us? Yes, we should remember the lessons we learned and the wisdom we gained not to make the same mistakes. But we should focus on what lies before us. Jesus even said that if we keep looking back we are not fit for His Kingdom.

Sometimes it takes time to forgive, hope again, and find the strength to face what is coming.

Even though I kind of knew this, I also did not know how to practically 'not look back'. So after some time reading into it, I came to 5 steps to keep your focus on what is in front of us, rather than keeping stuck in the past:

1: Surrender. We can plan all we want but in the end; God is in control. And He is good. Even when bad things happen, even when life throws a lemon at you, He can and will make all things new.

2: Let them. People will be people, let them and stop trying to please everybody. If they overtake you, they overtake you. If they hate you, they hate you. And rather be pleasing to God. Have faith and believe His Word. 

3: Learn to suffer well. In church, we don't get so much teaching on how to suffer well. Even though we all suffer. Long suffering is actually a fruit of the spirit and while it is not a nice one, it is a precious one. It shapes you and molds you to be more and more like Jesus. You get depth and strength inside of you. Besides, His Holy Spirit helps us to supernaturally endure what comes at us.

4: Have a soul joy. A wise woman told me that if you are so heavenly-focused that you forget actually to enjoy life you miss out. So, go outside, paint, plant a garden, dance, laugh and run!

5: Live with purpose. Set some goals for yourself. They don't have to be super big and you don't even have to always fully realize them, at least you have a direction to go in. That is the whole thing. If you know what lies ahead, you forget the past. Life is calling you, adventures are waiting for you and you are part of this beautiful, mysterious, wildlife!

So, let this new year, 2025, be the year of looking forward. We can trust God that when life happens, He can and will make all things new. He can help us to get from a setback, a set-up for a comeback.

With love and blessings,

Jeska