Have you ever encountered an overwhelming situation that made it seem impossible to take another step? Or ever yearned to forget the past and focus solely on the positive, trusting in God’s promises? Or ever yearned for a more profound faith that would allow you to trust God and experience His peace?
You want to believe. You hope to believe. You cry out to believe. But even though you are new in Christ and have been told all things are new, you struggle to move forward in faith. You want to believe the old is over, yet it still enters your thoughts and directs the moments of your life. You have trouble perceiving what your new life, free from your old nature, really is; that old man might be dead, yet you are still in bondage to him.
“Forget the former things,” the Lord declares. “Do not dwell on the past” (Isaiah 43:18).
This Scripture tells us not to wrap our minds around what has happened and not to continually think about the past that has defined us. It instructs us to make a decision to forget the past. “Forget” is a strong word, and it means “being unable to call to mind, unable to summon up, or unable to picture.” Now that sounds incredible! Not to remember or even have a picture in my mind of past fears or failures. “Forget” means that the past is done and gone. So we shouldn’t continually think about it or dwell on it. He will keep me, and He will keep you in perfect peace when our minds dwell on Him (Isaiah 26:3).
“See,” the Lord states, “I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it” (Isaiah 43:19)?
“See” is another strong word, and it means “to understand, realize, or perceive.” It doesn’t mean to just look. “Look” has no depth, and is concerned with the outward appearance only. “See” takes “look” somewhere it has never gone before. “See” looks beyond the past. It looks beyond what is factually true in the here and now, expectantly believing that God is doing a new thing. Faith springs up, alive and knowing, unwavering, believing in God’s promise. Do I perceive it? Do you?
When our minds aren’t preoccupied with dwelling on the past, analyzing and processing it, hope has a chance. We must forget the old and banish it from our minds. Our minds must be renewed by the Word (Ephesians 4:23, Romans 12:2) until our perspective aligns with it. We can then have the confidence to believe God does a new thing.
“Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised” (Hebrews 10:35-36).
Will we hold on to our confidence, knowing He is faithful to His promise? Will we persevere in seeing the new life within us? Will we seek His purpose? He will reward our diligence. If we will give Him our past, our fears, and our failures, His peace shall guard our minds and hearts, and thinking on good things will come much more easily (Philippians 4:6-8).
His promise of peace is real. We choose to forget the former things, and believe His promises. We choose to let go of the things which have defined us, and believe by faith that His promises of peace, joy, healing, purpose, freedom, and every good and perfect gift, are absolutely true.
He makes “a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland… He provides water in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise” (Isaiah 43:20-21).
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