My 15-year-old daughter recently got her drivers permit. This is nothing new around here as she is daughter number 4 and we are kind of “old hat” at this driving thing. Overall she has done a really great job so far, mind you we are just starting our third week but with improvement each week I am confident she will be ready to test come November. I have to say I am not really sure who is happier at this point her or me. I have been driving children around for 28 years! Her dad recently said maybe we should just have her wait until she is 18 and I am pretty sure my head spun in an almost complete circle as I asked him why he would want to punish me any longer! I think he was looking for a reaction from me and I surely delivered.
Most all of her little driving idiosyncrasies are the normal things, taking corners a bit fast, slowing down too soon and parking a bit far from the curb. I really can’t complain. The one thing I noticed though that her instructor brought to our attention was she looks back a bit too long and when she does that while gripping the steering wheel it causes her to drift a little bit. He said for her to work on a quick glance to look to see that there is no danger while changing lanes and then proceed forward.
I thought wow, that is just like life. We often start looking back and then it can cause us to veer off course, even if it is just slightly. I think we need to look back once in a while to see where we have come from or to make sure there in no danger lurking behind us but we cannot do it for long. It can be detrimental. For some reason, we seem to always want to look back to what is behind us whether it was good or bad. If it was good we want to revisit it because maybe it was a better time than where we are currently. If it was bad sometimes we want to revisit it for numerous reasons. We may want to make sure we don’t ever go back there. We could secretly feel we deserved what was there, which I think may happen more than we think. Quite possibly we may be looking back because we simply want to learn. Whatever the reason is we need to take our moments to do a quick glance but stay on the course. Drifting could cause great danger.
God does not want us to live in the past. He wants us to live today. Looking ahead for all he has planned for us. I love in Philippians 3:13 Paul is telling the church this…“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. 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. I think in simple terms Paul could be saying this, I have not yet arrived at my destination but when I do it is going to be amazing! I am going to forget what is behind, all my failures, disappointments, wrong doings, etc and I am going to just keep going toward the goal. Where ever you are on your journey, stop looking back. Take the quick glance for precaution but focus forward. No matter what you have done or where you have come from it is behind you. God has amazing things for you.
Until Next Time…
robynstroup 
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