Don’t Look Back
Isaiah 43:18, 19
18 Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. 19 Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
When I was a very little girl, around four or five years old, my mother was sorting through my clothes to determine what still fit me and what could be passed down to another little girl. I remember sitting on the floor as she went through my drawers, opening one and mauling through each piece, and me feeling distressed about it. It isn’t that I don’t like change; I just don’t want to give up, move on, or let go of the present and the past. I never realized how deep this ran in me until I was much older and had to transition into another season and change in my life.
As my mom pulled out a pair of flannel-lined pants, I felt something like a vise go around my little heart. Oh no, not my favorite pants! I knew I no longer could fit into them comfortably, but they were my absolute favorite pair! I remember mom gently saying, “But Meredith, don’t you think another little girl would really like to wear them? They’re so nice and warm.” Common sense was trying to press into my brain, but my emotions were fighting right back. These were my favorite! I had good memories of the cold winter days I had spent wearing them and how they had kept me so cozy warm, riding on the back of my grandpa’s workhorses as he drug timber out of his woodlot. Or the days of those snowball fights in the deep snow piled up in front of our Maine home. It wasn’t necessarily the pants as it was the memories, those precious memories I still cherish to this day.
I grudgingly released my flannel-lined trousers into my mom’s hands knowing she would see they went to a worthy wearer. This is what I am finding I need to do with past seasons God is prodding me to move on from—release them into His careful hands. There’s a line in the song, “New Wine,” that resonates in my spirit—“I lay down my old flame to carry your new fire today.” The anointing of yesterdays will not do for this season. It was right and good for that past season and fit perfectly into our lives, helping us grow and enjoy those days. Now we are told by Isaiah to not remember the former things or consider the things of old. Yes, we remember, but I think God is saying don’t dwell on them; don’t get stuck in them. Cherish them and those you shared life with, yes, but move on with the Spirit of the Living God whose ways are perfect, whose timing is perfect and who makes our way perfect. Behold, He is doing a new thing. It will spring forth and you don’t want to miss it.
What about you? Are you stuck in a past season in your mind and emotions? Can you seek God to make you a new wineskin to carry new wine, new anointing for this day and time? He has such wonderful, powerful plans for you, and you don’t want to miss them. Let’s let go and move forward with the Lord today.
