Don't Look Back | Daily Devotional 1644

You're listening to the My Morning Devotional Podcast, episode 1644. Today's Devo is called Don't Look Back.

Hey there, we're the Alessis, a ministry family working together in our church in Miami, Florida. And if you're like us, when days get busy, the to-do lists get longer, it can be hard to find devotional time. That's why every weekday we share a five-minute daily dose of heaven. This is the My Morning Devotional Podcast.

Hello, everyone. My name is Lauren Burgos, and I am your host for this week. We are reading out of Philippians 3, the whole chapter. And I, you guys already know, I'm just loving this theme. It's so good. I remember the day I read this for like, well, not the first time. There's like when you're raised as a Christian, you read the verses and you know it. And then there's a day you like read it like cognizant for the first time when your brain is like coming together, and you're like, oh, I can actually apply this to my life. That happened to me. And I remember that day. And um it just totally I just love the book of Philippians. I love Paul so much. I think he's I just think he's awesome. Um, yeah, and I'm speechless. So yeah, let's jump right into the word. Uh today's Devo is called Don't Look Back, and uh we're gonna talk about the past. And so Philippians 3.13 says this brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it, 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. I love this part. I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it, which just shows a humility which talks about what we were talking about yesterday. There's something so relieving about finding a humility that's like, I'm not perfect and I haven't achieved this yet. But one thing I do, forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, forgetting the past, not dwelling in it, and just focusing on the future. Not just I keep on moving, but I press on towards the goal to which God has called me to, to win the prize, not just oh, to live my life, oh, to just be good. No, to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. And I just want to say we're talking about well, what is actually worth it, and we're talking about it here. The goal to which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Sometimes as Christians, we can, and this is just a little nugget for tomorrow, but we can easily think like the goal is here on earth. It's not, guys. The goal is in heaven. Like explosion, whoa, but it's true. The goal is ultimately in heaven, it's not even here on earth. So why am I talking about Philippians 3.13? And why are we saying don't look back? It's very simple. It is so easy to get caught up in the past. And the enemy can play with your thoughts and play with your past over and over and over again. Thinking things like, I should have never done that, I so regret doing this, I messed everything up, I really wish I could redo that season. Even if you don't come from like a really, you know, traumatic past or maybe a past where you made bad decisions, even if you just feel like, man, I I wish I lived my life with like before kids differently. I wish I soaked it up, or I wish I lived my childhood to the fullest, you could just dwell in a season you're not currently in. And there's no wisdom to that whatsoever. And of course, we all make comments here and there, and there's no harm in that. But dwelling in a season that is completely behind you, that's just a lack of wisdom because there's no part of you that can go back to that time. If there was a possibility that we could time travel and say, hey, I really wish I could go back to, you know, my childhood and make better friends, or like redo that, or I really wish I could go back to my college years and redo that. Or I really wish I could redo my single years because I made so many mistakes and I wish I could do better and be a better Christian. You know, if we were time travelers, I'd be like, let's talk about that and dissect that all day long. But there's nothing we could do about it. So here's what Paul says, brothers and sisters, I not that I consider myself an expert, but here's what I do: you have to forget what is behind and strain towards what is ahead, which is the goal that God has called you to. And it's the goal to win the prize heavenward. And if you think that your past, it's something you dwell in a lot, and it's something that you really regret and you compare it to others, guys. Paul, the person who wrote this verse, he literally murdered Christians. So if we're gonna compare, which we shouldn't, I like I'm just gonna leave it there. So if Paul has an ability to say, guys, even I have to overcome my past, and I do, I have to literally forget what is behind me and strain towards what is ahead. We have to learn to do that same thing. Am I saying it's easy? No. Am I saying it's a skill? Yes. That you have to train your brain, nope, that's in the past. I can't fix that season. I am moving ahead. And what does that look like? If you regret how you lived one season, don't currently walk in a season now in a way that you're going to regret. Live it up to the fullest. If you regret how you did your singlehood or your single years, then do your dating or your engaged or your married years in a way that you're not gonna regret. I mean, sure, do I have regret for a season in the past? Absolutely. Do I want to learn from it and live life to the fullest now in this season? Yes. That is straining toward what is ahead and pressing toward the goal to win the prize. And I just want to stop right here and pause and say, I am not an expert in this. This is not something that I'm like, I'm preaching to you because I'm good at this. No, very much like Paul. I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. Absolutely not. I just am doing a podcast today, and this is the word that popped up. But this is a struggle and this is a skill, and it's a skill that has to be practiced every single day. But I want to challenge you to do it every day. If you dwell in the past quite often, forget what is behind and strain towards what is ahead. Because what is ahead for you is an amazing future, and it is a goal to win the prize for which God has called you heavenward. Let's pray. Dear Lord, we thank you so much that Lord, you wipe, first of all, you have wiped our sins clean. All everything that happened in the past, God, when we come to you and ask for your forgiveness, Lord, your word says that you separate our sins as far as the East is from the West, God, and you just forget about it, Lord. Lord, help us to do the same. And God, if there's something in our season in our past that we haven't asked forgiveness for, let us do that right now, God. And Lord, help us truly forget what is behind and strain towards what is ahead and not look back. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

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