before we pray let's first take a moment to listen to God's word and then we'll pray together Sometimes we find ourselves drifting back in time Maybe it's when we flip through an old photo album Maybe it's a familiar scent the chorus of a song from years ago or the way a certain place feels when we return after a long time away And suddenly before we even realize it we're no longer in the present moment Our hearts drift backward to another time another place A time when life felt simpler A time when we felt more loved
more alive or less burdened A moment we wish we could bottle up and return to And there's nothing wrong with remembering In fact it's a gift to reflect on the past the moments that shaped us the people who touched our lives the chapters that helped form our identity God himself often told his people to remember Remember his faithfulness his miracles his deliverance Remembering can be a form of worship But there is a quiet danger too It's the line we rarely see until we've already crossed it The moment when remembering turns into longing and longing turns
into being stuck It happens when we begin to wish for the past more than we hope for the future When we start believing that our best days are behind us When we cling to memories tighter than we cling to God's promises when what was becomes more precious to us than what God says is yet to come The Bible gives us a sobering example through the story of Lot's wife In Genesis 19:17 as judgment was coming upon Sodom and Gomorrah angels warned Lot and his family "Escape for your life Do not look back or stop anywhere
in the valley escape to the hills lest you be swept away God was not just calling them out of a sinful city He was calling them into a new future He was providing rescue a way forward a new beginning He was saying "What's behind you is destruction What's ahead is mercy Run toward me." But as they ran Lot's wife looked back And in that single moment she became a pillar of salt At first it seemed so harsh Was it really so wrong to glance over her shoulder but it wasn't just about turning her head It
was about what was still living in her heart She longed for what God had called her out of She wasn't just looking at her past She was holding on to it Maybe it was the comfort of familiarity Maybe it was the lifestyle the memories or even relationships left behind Whatever it was she couldn't fully release it She didn't trust that what God was leading her into was better than what she was leaving behind And in many ways we are not so different How many times have we said we want to follow God but our hearts
are still tied to the past we say we want a fresh start but we keep returning to old habits old sins or old mindsets We say we're ready to walk in freedom but we're still chained by the voices of yesterday Jesus spoke directly to this when he said in Luke 9:62 "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." It's a hard saying but a necessary one because you can't walk forward in faith while constantly looking over your shoulder You can't run your race while your
heart is still tied to what used to be You can't receive what's ahead while clinging to what God asked you to release Even Ecclesiastes 7:10 gives us this counsel Do not say "Why were the old days better than these?" For it is not wise to ask such questions Why does scripture say this because we often romanticize the past We remember the sweet parts and forget the bitter And in doing so we dishonor the present moment where God is actively working When our eyes are always fixed on what was we miss what is and what could
be Isaiah 43 18 and 19 says "Forget the former things Do not dwell on the past See I am doing a new thing Now it springs up Do you not perceive it right now even in this moment God is doing something new in your life You may not see the full picture yet You may still feel unsure But he is working He is shaping He is leading So don't turn back Don't let guilt define you Don't let shame bind you Don't let regret chain you to who you used to be You've been set free You've
been given grace You've been invited into something far more beautiful than anything you've left behind God is not in your past He's in your present He's in your future and he is calling you forward So walk forward with hope in your heart and your eyes fixed on him The best is not behind you The best is still to come Now let's take a moment to pray together Heavenly Father thank you for always being by my side Looking back now I see traces of your fingerprints over every chapter of my life Even in the silence you
were speaking even in the darkness you were guiding even when I felt alone you never left me Thank you for the kind of love that doesn't walk away when I fall Thank you for your mercy that never grows tired even when I make the same mistake again Thank you for standing steady through every storm through every heartbreak through every change that I didn't ask for and didn't understand When people left you stayed When the world shifted you remained the same When my heart broke you held every piece with care As your word in Isaiah 43
says "Forget the former things Do not dwell on the past See I am doing a new thing Now it springs up Do you not perceive it i am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the desert Lord I believe that this promise still speaks I believe you are doing something new in me right here right now Even if I can't see it yet with my eyes I choose to believe it with my heart I trust that you are building something sacred in the hidden places I trust that you are writing a story of
redemption that only you could tell Thank you for rescuing me from the life I once lived Thank you for not leaving me where you found me You pulled me out of the pit I had accepted as normal You lifted me when I thought I had nothing left You whispered hope when my own voice was too weary to pray You didn't just clean me up You clothed me with grace You didn't just forgive me You called me chosen You didn't just give me a new path You walked it with me I'm grateful Lord for every moment
of your faithfulness Even in the things I didn't understand at the time I can now see how you were putting purpose through pain growth through loss and closeness through brokenness Thank you for loving me when I didn't even like myself Thank you for guarding me from harm I never even knew was there You have always been a good shepherd even when I wandered like a lost sheep But father I confess there are still moments when I look back I still catch myself thinking about old seasons old habits old relationships and wondering if they were really
that bad I miss the comfort sometimes I ask questions like "Was I happier then even though I know that life wasn't full of peace or freedom forgive me Lord for letting those thoughts linger too long Forgive me for entertaining the lies that try to pull me back into a past You died to free me from Help me remember again and again that your way is better Better than anything I let go of Better than any plan I had before I met you Better than the temporary pleasures that left me empty Break every invisible tie that
still connects me to my old life The way I used to think react hide or doubt Wash away every secret desire that doesn't belong to the new creation you've made me to be Take away the things I don't even know are still there and give me the strength to walk forward Let me be like Paul who declared boldly that he was forgetting what was behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead Let me run with endurance not looking over my shoulder not secondguessing not wavering Let my faith be stronger than my fear and my obedience
be louder than my past regrets Give me a heart that hungers for what's next with you A heart that trusts you are still writing beautiful chapters ahead A heart that doesn't shrink back but rises up in courage even when the road ahead looks uncertain Make me new Lord day by day Strip away what's not from you and plant deeper roots in what is Teach me how to live with joy and contentment not just in the good times but also in the ordinary in the waiting in the learning Help me walk in purpose not chasing the
approval of others but pleasing you And when I grow weary when my soul feels tired when I wonder if I've made progress at all remind me of who you are You are the God who brings streams to dry places You are the God who rebuilds ruins into sacred spaces You are the God who speaks life over dead things You are the God who never gives up on me even when I struggle to believe in myself So today I choose again to move forward I choose to trust you not just with my eternity but with my
today I choose to believe that even now you are doing something new in me I leave the past at the foot of the cross and I walk forward in the freedom you purchased for me with your blood In Jesus' name I pray Amen If this prayer has touched your heart please type amen as a sign of faith I pray that every blessing in this prayer is now upon you in the name of Jesus And if you need a special prayer feel free to let us know in the comments We would be honored to pray for
you May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you always
