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Forgetting the past…. Getting past the past …. Overcoming Your Past. Marching Forward.

No one can change their past, yet we can and are instructed to forget it!

Concerning our faithfulness to God, one writer penned this:

“The secret of being ‘faithful until death’ is to be faithful one day at a time. You can only live one day at a time; you can only be faithful one day at a time. So don’t worry about whether you were faithful yesterday or not, or whether you’re going to be faithful tomorrow. Just do your best to be faithful today. The Bible tells us to forget the past (Philippians 3:13), and tomorrow will take care of itself (Matthew 6:34)-or the Lord will take care of it. Just be faithful today. Don’t worry about your whole life! Don’t keep asking yourself, ‘Am I going to be faithful until the day I die, so I can be sure to get a crown of life?'”

“I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.” Isaiah 44:22

AT THIS POINT, TODAY, RIGHT THIS MOMENT, it simply doesn’t matter who you were nor what you did in your past. If the LORD has saved you, you are a new creature in Christ and when you asked Him to forgive your sins, as you confessed them in true repentance, He did. They’re gone (Hebrews 8:12; 1 John 1:9). Today is the first day of the rest of your life! Jesus reigns supreme!

You simply cannot look back beloved of God. He’s taking you forward, into Him. You are no longer who you used to be. You have God’s Word on this (Philippians 3:13-14).

Not 1 person alive right now has a sinless past – before or after Jesus saved them.

Just keep “forgetting those things which are behind” and “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.” (Philippians 3:13-14)

“… let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1-2 

The following is from Modern Day Ruth:

“I’m not turning back. I’m moving forward in the promises and blessings God has prepared for me. What I lost is behind me. I look over my shoulder only to remind myself of how far the Lord has brought me thru. That which I lost I will not return to because everything I have is entrusted in the hands of the Almighty. He restores and creates brand new blessings. The rubble of broken dreams are just a memorial of His Grace and Mercy that has brought me thru this far. As I continue to trust Him and follow His lead He reveals more of His presence and Glory. I am being transformed day by day. Though what I am praying for, standing for, dreaming and reaching for tarries- I will wait for it because it will come to pass. My tears, struggles and pains may not make sense now but I know the master Planner knows what He’s doing. I hear His voice; Listen intently to His instruction, “This is the way that you should go- Walk in it.” I savor and marvel at depth and layers of His beauty I see along the way of my journey. Here I find treasures in hidden places that have been laid up for the righteous. I glean wisdom in nearby fields. I see smiling faces of my Sisters and Brothers in Christ as they too are walking towards the horizon. God has truly been good to me. He is always faithful. Just when I think I can’t go on He sustains me and refreshes me and gives me His waters to drink and His bread to eat. He is taking me to my promise land. Written by Jenny Williams, A Modern Day Ruth, © 2013

✝️Isaiah 43:18 (KJV)
Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.”

We need only to concern ourselves with our relationship with the LORD today, living in the now, the present – not the past or future.

“Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” Matthew 6:34

Heavenly, Father, we now ask You to settle our spirits, help us to truly, wholly seek and trust You dear LORD – living in the present and not suspended in the past or future. In the name of Jesus, amen.

RECENTLY, during the night hours, it seems the Holy Spirit was impressing upon this heart how important it is for His people to abide in Christ, today, living unto Him in the moment, forgetting the things that are behind them, and pressing toward the mark for the high calling of God in Christ Jesus our LORD. Is this the biblical perspective? Yes. Matthew 6:33-34; John 15:1-6; Philippians 3:13-14. Your past has passed – good or bad, it’s over! Done. Praise Jesus that today is the first day of the rest of our lives and Jesus forgives all the sins of His abiding (therefore repentant) saints!

Today, someone is in need of declaring the divinely inspired words of Philippians 3:13-14 aloud before the LORD, yourself, and the devil. Do it. Severance, a cutting off awaits.

As he anticipated going to be with the LORD, Christ’s apostle Paul declared the following:

“For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:6-8

The late Charles Pray writes: “It’s not so much what we didn’t do in the past, the past is gone. Now, it’s what are we doing now with our LORD Jesus that really counts.”

ANYBODY praising God today for being ABLE to FORGET some things you did? Hello somebody! God will enable you to FORGET! He does!

“He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. 12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” Psalms 103:10-12 

God forgives the sins of His people – beginning with the moment He initially saves us. He intends to keep us cleansed and will do so as we confess any sin! (1 John 1:9)

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

1 John 1:9 – reveals 2 promises to those  in Christ who confess any sin we committed. When we confess, God is faithful to:

  1. “forgive us our sins, and…
  2. “to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

“For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.” Hebrews 8:12

Not only sin but also past accomplishments can hinder us from presently abiding in Christ, right?

If we think about it for a moment, even the good things of our past can hinder us, due to the pride they may foster in us, leading to a lax, a lazy posture.

When he faced Goliath, David rehearsed past victories as he encouraged himself in the LORD as he called into remembrance the bear and lion he’d been empowered by God to slay (1 Samuel 17:34-37). Yet, this was at least in part, due to the ridicule of Saul. Yet, if we give undue accolades to ourselves for past victories, might we be prone to foster an undue pride in our hearts?

We must put our past in the past …. even the good stuff. Trashing the Trophies …. “this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14)

The accuser of the brethren is Satan and he seeks to harass and to badger the people of God, haunting them about things God already forgave (Revelation 12:10). They must learn how to biblically navigate, to overcome by the blood of the LAMB, who washes us white as snow!

“And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. 12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” Revelation 12:10-12

Biblical deliverance prescription: Speak out loud the divinely inspired words of Philippians 3:13-14. Declare them as if they are true for your life – because they are! Drive a stake in the ground!

Brother Joseph Blunk writes:

“Just because you were a sinner yesterday, doesn’t mean you have to continue to be a sinner today. Repent of who you were yesterday, and be who God has commanded you to be today! Yesterday is in the past and today is here. God’s mercies are new every morning, so seek Him while it is still called today! No one knows when their life will be over, and they’ll find themselves in front of God’s throne, so get right and STAY right with Him!”

You cannot change the past. You cannot undo what you did in the evil sense when you sinned against God and hurt others in doing so. But you can today realize that this is the first day of the rest of your life and forget those things which are behind, reaching forth unto those things which are before you and press toward the mark for the prize of the High Calling of God in Christ Jesus. Not only can you do this, this is actually the command of God for you to do. Prayerfully pore over and declare Philippians 3:13-14 till it becomes part of your life.

Do we not “give place to the devil” when we sulk in a sin God forgave the instant we confessed it?

“Neither give place to the devil.” Ephesians 4:27

Make no mistake: When we sin it is against a Holy, unchanging God and “the wages of sin is (still) death.” (Romans 6:23)

“Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” 2 Corinthians 7:1

Overcoming All Sin

“Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Matthew 26:41

While there is divine mercy to forgive our sins and grace to divinely enable us to overcome them, the consequences of sin are lasting. This is clear in the life of Moses and David and others throughout biblical history. David reaped horrid consequences on himself and his household after he committed adultery and had Uriah murdered. Staying in the Spirit and not the flesh, will prevent future sinning.

The only way to stay out of the flesh is to stay in the Spirit. Fighting the good fight of faith consists of diligently laboring daily in seeking God (Ephesians 6:12).

“For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.” Proverbs 24:16

True disciples who walk with God, like beloved David, know what it means to fall, to sin, to repent, to return to the LORD, and to be restored by the LORD. They therefore help you, they encourage, they admonish, and warn you to hasten to the throne of grace to obtain mercy and grace!

IF you choose to sin, it’s going to cost you (Romans 6:23). We must all reap what we sow (Galatians 6:7-8). Yet, the transgressor should run TO God, not AWAY from Him.

“My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:” 1 John 2:1

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain MERCY, and find GRACE to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16

Saints, may our LORD help us to HELP other disciples who are in the same fight as we are in and help them in the LORD’s process of sanctification. Galatians 6:1-2; 2 Timothy 2:24-26

In some cases, there will be those who do not want to forgive your past. They live with a heart of hatred due to their own refusal to repent and seek the LORD continually.

THOSE who still think you are the same person you were in the past, prove that THEY are the same person they were in the past. They prove they are not growing in God’s grace themselves and are still the unrepentant person they were in the past! (Romans 2:1-3) Their projection of this darkness emanates from their own darkened heart.

The Drawings of God

When God convicts us it is to draw us to Himself (John 16:8; 12:32). He loves us and wants His glory reigning in our lives and this is always for our own good.

“The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.” Jeremiah 31:3

When our LORD draws us back to Himself, we are to return to Him in true repentance and “times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord” will be upon us.

“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;” Acts 3;19 

YOUR PRAYER: Holy Father, I come to You afresh, now in the name of Jesus Christ. Please forgive my sins by the precious blood of my LORD Jesus. Wash me clean dear LORD and remove the guilt from my conscience. Here and now I let the past go. I forget those things which are now behind me. I reach forth unto Thee dear LORD and what you have for me to do in this temporal world. I now press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. I love You LORD Jesus and thank You for everything You’ve given to this child of Yours to use for You glory and not my own. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Support | STORE | Podcasts | Jail/Prison MinistryMexico Mission here | All Ministry Updates| More on Assurance hereBecause You Care Page | The Greatest of these is CharityBe Ready in the Morning [podcast]The Sure Mercies of David [podcast]That Repentance and Remission of Sins should be Preached [podcast]At His Feet

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Abiding

Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee [podcast]


Here’s why Jesus came:

“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” John 17:3

There is nothing – NO-THING – more important in your life than your relationship with Christ.

Job 22

Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee. 22 Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart. 23 If thou return to the Almighty, thou shalt be built up, thou shalt put away iniquity far from thy tabernacles. 24 Then shalt thou lay up gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the brooks. 25 Yea, the Almighty shall be thy defence, and thou shalt have plenty of silver. 26 For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God. 27 Thou shalt make thy prayer unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shalt pay thy vows. 28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways. 29 When men are cast down, then thou shalt say, There is lifting up; and he shall save the humble person. 30 He shall deliver the island of the innocent; and it is delivered by the pureness of thine hands.” Job 22:21-30

“lay up his words in thine heart” v22 – WITH the learning of each new verse of Holy Scripture, each new Bible truth, your knowledge and understanding of the LORD and His kingdom is expanded.

“Let thine heart retain my words.” Proverbs 4:4

“I have seen an end of all perfection: but thy commandment is exceeding broad. 97 MEM. O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day. 98 Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me. 99 I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation. 100 I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts.” Psalms 119:96-100

“God’s acquaintance is not made hurriedly.” EM Bounds

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Abiding

Dwelling in the Secret Place of the Most High [podcast]


“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” Psalms 91:1

Of the Bible phrase “secret place of the most High”, one source notes:

“‘The secret place of the Most High’: is a spiritual state of intimacy, trust, and absolute protection in God, referenced in Psalm 91:1. It is not a physical location, but rather a hidden sanctuary found in the heart of God, accessed through prayer and a surrendered life.”

“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” John 17:3

Prayer communion is inseparably connected with knowing God (John 17:3).

Knowing the Father and the Son is the whole purpose for which He made you.

“That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.” 1 John 1:3-4 

Beloved of God, you have a relationship with your Maker, not religion.

To know Him, we must seek Him. He promises us that as we seek Him, He will be found of us!

“if thou seek him, he will be found of thee.” 1 Chronicles 28:9

He promises to manifest Himself exclusively to those who “diligently seek him.” (1 Chronicles 16:11; John 14:21-23, etc.)

God is not hiding and yet He is not available to the casual seeker. Only those who “diligently seek him” will be known as His, will experience in real relationship with the LORD.

“But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” Matthew 6:33

“A sinning man stops praying. A praying man stops sinning.” – Leonard Ravenhill

“And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” Mark 1:35

Anyone not praying is not seeking God and has already fallen away (Luke 12:40).

“A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary.” Jeremiah 17:12

The LORD’s people are known as His “house” and He calls them His “house of prayer.”

“And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.” Matthew 21:13

Those who truly love and worship the LORD perpetually seek His holy face and that’s called prayer.

“Pray without ceasing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:17

“Seek his face continually”

“Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually.” 1 Chronicles 16:11

Spending quality moments with God is your best time spent (Matthew 6:6).

“The preaching of the Word of the Lord fails to run and be glorified from many causes. The difficulty may lie with the preacher himself, should his outward conduct be out of harmony with the rule of the Scriptures and his own profession. The word lived must be in accord with the word delivered; the life must be in harmony with the sermon. The preacher’s spirit and behavior out of the pulpit must run parallel with the Word of the LORD spoken in the pulpit. Otherwise a man is an obstacle in the success of his own message.” E.M. Bounds, E.M. Bounds On Prayer,  p. 421

“A sinning man stops praying. A praying man stops sinning.” – Leonard Ravenhill

“The men who have done mighty things for God have always been mighty in prayer, have well understood the possibilities of prayer, and made the most of these possibilities. The Son of God, the first of all and the mightiest of all, has shown us the all-potent and far reaching possibilities of prayer. Paul was mighty for because he knew, how to use, and how to get others to use, the mighty spiritual forces of prayer.” EM Bounds, The Complete Works of E.M. Bounds on Prayer, P. 341

“It has been said that no great work in literature or in science was ever wrought by a man who did not love solitude. We may lay it down as an elemental principle of religion, that no large growth in holiness was ever gained by one who did not take time to be often long alone with God.” Austin Phelps

“Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Matthew 26:41 

Can anyone possibly NOT enter into temptation who is not living a life of prayer? Not possible. If you are not living a life of prayer, praying “without ceasing,” you ARE living in sin. Wonder no more. Fresh repentance before God needed (Hosea 10:12; 14:1-2; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; Hebrews 4:14-16).

It’s the cross – where you die so Christ can be preferred, can reign in your personal daily life.

“Ye are dead and your life is hid with Christ in God.” Colossians 3:3

Lotta Prayer
Lotta Power
vs
Lil Prayer
Lil power

No such thing as an overcoming, victorious child of God who doesn’t meet daily with God in prayer communion.

Let’s read the words of our LORD Jesus again – aloud:

“Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Matthew 26:41 

PRAYER: Holy Father, I come to You now, in repentance, asking You to please forgive my self-idolatry, rebellion, pride, sinful unbelief, and prayerlessness. Please wash me clean in Thy blood dear LORD Jesus. Unite my heart to fear Thy name. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Life of PrayerThe Place of Our Sanctuary | Having a Heart After the LORD

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Abiding

Are You Bless-able? English and Spanish [podcast]


Who is Going to be “Blessed”?

“A FAITHFUL MAN shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.” Proverbs 28:20

Like it or not, God has conditions to appropriate His blessings. Rebels hate this reality because they despise personal accountability, personal responsibility. Their rebellion changes nothing. Either repent, be saved, and walk humbly with Christ, or lose your soul for eternity in hell (Mark 8:34-38).

True followers of Jesus are doing the work of the Gospel, are diligent, are “not slothful,” and “inherit” “the promises” of God “through faith and patience.”

“For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister. 11 And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: 12 That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” Hebrews 6:10-12

In the New Testament, we don’t ever see disciples of Christ spending all kinds of time singing praise songs, numbing themselves out, etc. No, when the Holy Spirit truly fills a believer, it’s to be a witness of Christ and that person is sent out.

Jesus dwells large only in those who practically obey Him and not those just trying to get an emotional fix by soaking in a building in a “revival.”

“And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15

Are We Bless-able?

“It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Acts 20:35

Have you given God your life?

“So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:33

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