Freedom From Past Fears

As a young child I was afraid of swimming. I never really took lessons, and I hated putting my face in the water, so I ended up teaching myself how to swim—or at least keep myself afloat with doggie paddling. Any type of fear that keeps us from moving forward can be debilitating if we allow it to continue. As the years progressed, I gained more confidence in the swimming arena. I didn’t let my lack of aquatic abilities keep me from enjoying overall life.

There can be things from our past that even today keep us from enjoying life. The problem is they are the past, and we must move forward. We can’t be believers dragging all our past baggage with us through life. It’ll weigh us down. It can keep us bound by fear, and even tied in knots over the past. It’s time to let go of those things.

That’s how the Apostle Paul put it in Philippians 3:13-14, NASB – “One thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Paul could have let a lot of things from his past affect his life, his future. But he knew he was a different man once he met Jesus. He didn’t let the past keep him from pressing forward, growing in his knowledge of God’s love and grace. Because of his stand, we are recipients of the knowledge he gained and gives us.

God always wants us to move forward. He wants us to see the wonderful things He has ahead for us. He doesn’t want us dwelling on the past—the former things because they will always hold us back from His blessings. He tells us through the prophet Isaiah 43:18-19, ESV, “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”

It’s time to release the past. It’s time to let the regrets of yesterday/last year go. The baggage isn’t needed ahead as you continue walking in God’s love and grace. And, the great thing: Jesus will take away the sorrow connected with pain in your past. In its place will flow new love, new life, and new joy. You’ve been set free from past fears. Walk in your new freedom.