The apostle Paul was a highly educated man. You could say he had a strong pedigree. He was successful, influential and highly respected. He wrote three-fourths of the New Testament. He was the type of person you might see on the cover of Success Magazine today, and you would probably want to read about him. You'd wonder what made him so successful. Well, we can pick up the Bible, the inspired Word of God, and see what made Paul so successful!
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In Philippians 3:12-13, he is saying to us, "I have some very important advice to give you. There's one thing I do that I want to share with you, one piece of information that can change your life." He said, "This one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind, I press forward to what lies ahead." He was saying that the thing that helped him the most was learning to let go of his past mistakes and failures and focusing on the future, and that's what you and I need to do, too!
If anyone had to let go of the past, it was Paul. He used to kill Christians. He mocked God. He did things in the past that he would never do after his conversion experience. If he were to think about the past, I can only imagine how it might hinder his effectiveness. He might consider his old ways and shrink back saying, "Oh, who I am to speak about the things of God? I was the worst sinner of all!" But Paul had a revelation that he was made new through Christ Jesus, so he quickly let go of the old.
Today, is there something from your past that is still defining your future? Is there a circumstance that you are identifying yourself with that's holding you back from all God has called you to?
Do this one thing—forget it. Press forward. It may be hard, but that's what makes you stronger. Don't dwell on the past. If there are people you need to forgive, forgive them quickly. If you need to forgive yourself, forgive quickly. Don't let unforgiveness tie you to the past. Once you've given that over to God, let Him keep it! Forget the past, choose to let it go, and press forward to the amazing future God has in store for you!