I'm quoting an animated movie, because there are thousands stuck in my head. "It's like my buddy Timon says, you gotta put your behind in your past." (Pumbaa from the Lion King) For some of us, our past mistakes, our regrets are holding us down. We are so busy visiting the past that can't enjoy the present, much less move into the future. Are you worried that you've messed up your children? Do you feel like you have ruined your finances? Your opportunities? Screwed up relationships? Maybe you did. What now? You can let that stray dog keep trashing your yard, or you can get rid of him.

Here is some good news. Even though we may be living with the consequences of our past, there is hope and joy for the present and the future. God isn't mad at you. Did you hear that? He is not giving you the silent treatment or holding a grudge. He offers second chances in life! He hasn't given up on you! He loves to make things new. Isn't that a beautiful thought? Making old things new? It is true that his mercies are new every morning. The enemy sends that stray dog to your yard. He would love for you to do nothing, but I say it's time to run out there yelling, with a rock in your hand!

Your past is gone. It does not define you or confine you. God is making all things new! Sink down into the hope and joy that is the forgiveness of Christ. Feel the freedom that is yours today.

But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14

he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities...For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103: 10-12