How can you deal with the bad things that happen in your life? We cause some of these bad things to happen, and we are responsible for them. Other things, they happen to us through no fault of our own. But, how do we move forward from these? If we don’t learn how to move forward, we just get stuck in our past.

In the newest Transformers movie: The Last Knight, the Autobots and Decepticons are at war, with humans on the sidelines. Optimus Prime is frozen and floating through space. The key to saving the future lies buried in the secrets of the past, they need to find an old artifact buried on Earth. They are told: “To save your future, you must unlock your past!”

Maybe that’s a lot like you. Maybe, you’ve gotten stuck in the past, and you’re not really living. You’re not experiencing the fullness of life that God has planned for you. I want more for you than that. God wants more for you than that. How can you make that comeback and rise up past your past?

The kinds of experiences that keep us stuck include our sexual past, a recurring sin or failure in your life, hurtful words, an adulterous affair, divorce, parenting mistakes, and many others. You may know in your head that God has forgiven you, but you can’t forgive yourself.

So many people feel like David did when he said:

My guilt overwhelms me—it is a burden too heavy to bear. Psalm 38:4

Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.

God wants to help you overcome your past through His power.

  • GOD’S GRACE IS BIGGER THAN MY BIGGEST SINS.

Guilt is not from God because it paralyzes us from moving forward.

On the other hand, the conviction of the Holy Spirit produces changes our lives.

But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 1 John 1:9

What sin do you need to confess?

Jesus shed his blood to cleanse you and cover you from every wrong thing you’ve ever done. You’re covered!

He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. Psalm 103:12

  • I’M NOT WHAT I’VE DONE. I AM WHO GOD SAYS I AM.

What you’ve done doesn’t define you,

I am not who I say I am. I am not who others say I am. I am who God says I am!

Sin is an event, a thought or an action; it is never a person.

Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:17

Until you are connected with Christ by repenting of your sin and trusting in Him alone for your forgiveness and salvation, you are a prisoner of your sin. But, when you put your faith in Jesus, you will become a new person. The old life is gone and your whole life is made new. You get adopted by God into His forever family.

  • I CAN’T CHANGE MY PAST, BUT JESUS CAN CHANGE MY FUTURE!

Your past may be marked with hurt, failure, pain, betrayal, or abuse. I am so sorry for what you’ve gone through. I know it grieves the heart of God. But you can’t change the past. It is past and done.

You can move forward into the future God has for you with the power of God!

Whenever Satan tries to remind you of your past, just remind him of his future! You have a great future, and the devil’s future is certain. He is a defeated enemy. He has no future.

I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, Philippians 3:12-13

If the past is following you, forget it! “Forgetting what is past” means: to intentionally leave behind and stop remembering. Instead, confess your past to God and walk boldly forward in the forgiveness and good plan of God for your future!