Looking back

Can you imagine what it would be like if you drove everyday looking through the rear view mirror? You might catch a good glimpse of where you'd been, but you sure wouldn't have much luck getting to where you're going. In fact, a steady drive looking solely through the rear view mirror would inevitably bring you to collision.

We do that in life too. We can spend alot of time looking back in our lives. In fact, we can do that so much, that we lose sight entirely of where we are going. The more time we spend looking back, the more likely we are to stay stuck there. And sadly enough, we can get quite comfortable in the familiar of the past. Of course, there are times when looking back has its positives. Just this week, our family reminisced over old pictures. As we looked at our boys, we couldn't believe how little they had once been and how much they have grown. We felt so thankful to God for all that He had brought us through in times of difficulty. We also remembered that we had a lot of fun times together. Memories can be great. They have the power to affirm lives well lived and love well given.

But, on the flip side of that same rear view mirror watching are the things that we look back on that end up serving more as a discouragement in our lives. We can perch ourselves on decisions poorly made, relationships gone wrong, expectations that went unmet, or just plain old life handing us unpleasant and even very painful moments. That kind of mirror watching can leave us disabled or even completely paralyzed in how we live our lives.

We can "look back" in our lives by focusing on things that seem to be holding us back. I've done that with my back injury. "Why did this happen? When will I be able to get back to normal activities? Why do I have to wait? Why have I had to give up certain things? And of course, I could think, "What if...?" But, I choose not to go there - it just isn't going to take me in any positive direction. That's the road of worry. Worry won't add a single moment to my life. If anything, it will make my rear view mirror even larger than it needs to be, filled completely with "me" and not one bit with any thought of rest of the world out there. That's what rear view mirror watching does. It has a way of making us the focus and centre of our lives. We weren't meant to live that way. We were meant to be "other" centred.

There's nothing wrong with looking back for the sake of recollecting good memories. There's nothing wrong with looking back on not-so-good memories either, as long as we can learn from those times and use them as a springboard into the future. Our journey in life can't be taken looking back. It's taken one step at a time...walking forward, anticipating, hoping, trusting, believing that greater things are ahead.

Use your rear view mirror only as needed, for occasional direction. But, keep your eyes on the road ahead of you. The best is yet to come!