Dear Friends,
Today I awoke quite suddenly at 5:31 a.m. and started to spontaneously cry. I let the tears flow because, it is those moments where God speak. Philippians 3:13 came to mind: Forgetting what’s behind I press toward the mark. I took a deep breath and paused and asked, why Lord this verse? As I knew it was not so simple. The deep response: Many people focus on the gift of forgiveness (which for certain is powerful), yet what the Lord showed me is that the gift of forgetting is what propels fearless forward motion.
I realized forgetting can either come from a natural place of survival or a God-given place of resilience. For much of my life it was about survival yet, today, I can say it is resilience in Christ.
Forgetfulness means that God takes the unfruitful memories of myself and others - those things that press us down so we can’t move forward with God or relationally. Forgetting launches continued vulnerability, appropriately unguarded with others and fully unguarded with God! Forgetting means getting up everyday and planting ourselves in the seat of Gods roller coaster; not remembering the prior day when our "car" fell off the tracks. The definition is "a failure to remember." It is sin for me to remember certain things that block me or others. Many times I’ve asked the Lord, let me remember so I don’t get hurt. Let me remember so I can simply dismiss. But the Lord's response this morning was, "Absolutely NO!"
Forgetting will continue to breed and build vulnerability - an unveiled face - a deep exposure of the epistle written in my heart to be read and known by all men! It will leave the door open for others in our hearts so we don’t miss a thing! It yields a freedom to wake up each day to receive all God has and to receive from the most unlikely. Forgetting means not remembering pain so I don’t shield myself from future pain and only expecting God's best and letting Him take care of the rest. It means never saying never. Forgetting means hope is always the marker and cynicism is abolished. Forgetting allows the baby to survive and thrive even though the bath water was tough. Forgetting allows us to see Christ front and center in another. And most of all, forgetting allows us to keep loving and allowing God's love to fill us to the max.
Forgetting lets us run in the best freedom God has to offer His child. It is fearless! It is a gift in my heart that I am compelled to cultivate each day by God's mercy and Grace because He has forgiven AND FORGOTTEN a ton with me! The best part - it will be fully manifested in heaven when we see each other face-to-face.
Just my thoughts -
Love, Cari