God of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

"Depart, depart, go out from there!
   Touch no unclean thing!
Come out from it and be pure,
   you who carry the vessels of the LORD.
But you will not leave in haste
   or go in flight;
for the LORD will go before you,
   the God of Israel will be your rear guard."

Isaiah 52:11-12

At this time of year, I hear a lot of talk about New Year's Resolutions.  Gym memberships are up, more fruits and vegetables disappear from grocery shelves, and parents spend more time with their children.  The new year is a time of reflection of the past year's glories and failures, and hope for improvement in the coming year.

Our God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God who called Moses and His people to flee from the tyranny of the Pharaoh, the God who sent His people into exile only to call them back home again, is a God of yesterday, today and tomorrow. 

Yesterday

One of my favorite songs by Casting Crowns tells about how I can decide to listen to the Voice of Truth, or I can choose to listen to the Father of lies.  One tells me not to be afraid and that whatever I do in obedience will glorify God, the other tells me I'm a loser, reminding me of past failures and telling me that I'll never win. 

My past is a part of the fabric of my life.   No matter how bad, God used it to work together for my good.  But it doesn't have to rule my life.  God is my rear guard.  He protects me from attack from the demons of days gone by that threaten to keep my in the past. 

I am a new creation, and I am created in Christ Jesus to do good works which He prepared in advance for me to do!  My God brought me through my past in order to get me to where I am now so that I can be the woman He created me to be.  I am infinitely valuable to Him, and He does not base my worth on what did or did not happen in the past.  He bases it on the fact that I am made in His image, and as His child, I am of infinite value to Him.

Today

Sometimes it is hard to live in the moment.  I am constantly thinking of the things I need to do which takes my mind from the present.  Perhaps missionary martyr Jim Elliot* said it best when he proclaimed,  “Wherever you are, be all there! Live to the hilt every situation you believe to be the will of God.”

The present is where I am right now.  It is a gift of God's grace and I am wasting it when I dwell in the past, or think about what I need to do next.  Now will never come again.  I must depart from whatever it is that is keeping me from living in the now.  God has promised to go before me, He can handle the future.  He is protecting me from dwelling in the past.  I am hemmed in on every side.  He has given me every opportunity to live in the present.  Will I take it?

Tomorrow

The future is a funny thing because it can be anything I want it to be.  I can spend hours living in the future, creating a world where I am out of debt, where I am the perfect weight for my height, where I am perfectly patient and loving to everyone I meet, where I love and respect my husband at all times, responding to his every beck and call.  Basically, my future is ideal!

But God is the only One who knows the future, and part of faith is trusting Him with mine.  Whatever He wants it to be, that is what I accept as His child. Great 19th century evangelist D.L. Moody** said, "The sweetest lesson I have learned in God's school is to let the Lord choose for me."

Letting God have His way in my life means I may not do the things I day dream about.  In fact, I may even do some things I have no intention of trying on my own.  But God has a way of pushing us into that which we are afraid in order to glorify himself.  Just as He said to the apostle Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

It is only when I let God place me where He wants me to be, that He is made more and I am made less.  Just as John the Baptist said about Jesus, "He must become greater; I must become less." (John 3:30)  The only way that is going to happen, is if I follow Him who has gone before me!

As I begin this day, it is my prayer that I will leave yesterday and tomorrow in God's hands and live for Him today!

How does my past keep me from moving forward today?

How do thoughts of my future distract me from the present?

*Jim Elliot quote from   http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/show/12747

** DL Moody quote from  http://dailychristianquote.com/dcqrelationshipgod6.html