Let Go of What Was and Live the Life You’ve Been Given

”Only he must not acquire many horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to acquire many horses, since the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall never return that way again.’“ Deuteronomy‬ ‭17‬:‭16‬ ‭ESV‬‬
  • What stood out for me, was how the Lord said, “you shall never return that way again”. When the Lord has set you free; delivered you from an addiction, or habit, or even a wrong way of living, you don’t go back, you don’t return to the old but you keep moving forward in the new life He has given you.

  • Reminds me of a dream I had once several years ago, a house that seemed familiar and a door I could not open, even though I knew where it led. Now, I don’t think that much of my dreams, but this one made me think. Is the Lord trying to tell me that that “life” is over, you don’t live there anymore, live the life I have given you now. I wonder if that’s what the angel was trying to tell Lot’s wife?
  • In Genesis 19:17,26, an angel of the Lord told Lot’s wife not to look back as they were fleeing Sodom, before the Lord destroyed it—but, she looked back and became a pillar of salt. “A pillar of salt”, I can’t help but wonder what that looked like. I wonder if it’s similar to the rock formations in Bryce Canyon they call Hoodoos:)
  • But in all seriousness, we are not meant to hold onto the past; our old ways of thinking or doing things; our old ways of living life. We are to move forward, especially once we’ve accepted Jesus. In the following verse Jesus says, “Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life will preserve it.” (Luke‬ ‭17‬:‭33‬ ‭NIV‬) Or even, “Remember Lot’s wife!” (Luke‬ ‭17‬:‭32‬ ‭NIV‬‬), which as a fun fact, is the second shortest verse in the Bible! 
  • ‭‭‬But, why do we hold onto the past? Why is it so hard to let go?Can we honestly say we miss the life we had before Jesus? Would we honestly want to go back? I can’t help but wonder what it was that Lot’s wife couldn’t let go of? What was so important back there that she would disobey the angels command and look? 
  • In Philippians 3:13-14, Paul says, “…But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” And in Hebrews 12:1, “…let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
  • ‭‭We are meant to go forward. We are called to let go of the past. We are new creations in Christ Jesus! “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭17‬ ‭NIV‬‬‭‭
  • ‭‭So don’t get stuck in the past, don’t be like Miss Havisham in the book “Great Expectations”, everything came to a stop for her because she was left at the altar and couldn’t move on. Let Jesus take you by the hand, lead you out of your “Egypt” and bring you to your promised land! 

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Comments

  1. AnonymousApril 16, 2024 at 8:22 AM

    When I was 8 years old and had to pick a scripture verse to be read at my baptism my mother had a small plastic box with scripture versed in it and the idea was to pull the first card each day and read the verse then put the card in the back of the box. My mom thought that would be a good way to pick a verse for my baptism. I pulled the first card in the box and the verse was 2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭17. That is what we used.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. MaryApril 16, 2024 at 9:07 AM

      That is so awesome! And what a great memory to have!

      Delete

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