Some of the best memories that I have and the best friends that I have kept so far were made between 1990 and 1995 in a remote village in Niger State, Nigeria. Those were my secondary school years. Those days bring loads of smiles to my face and I still catch myself singing the anthem of my school often and of course I’m still in touch with most of my classmates and some teachers.
No matter how much I enjoyed those days, I had to move on in June 1995. I had to take my eyes off the rear-view mirror, move on to University and also move on from there when my days for that phase were completed.
Sometimes, what we see in the rear-view mirror may not be as pleasant as my secondary school experience. The road to where we are coming from may be awash with pain and losses, but we have to keep moving, as long as we are still living.
No matter how bitter or how sweet our past experiences may be, we cannot afford to chain ourselves to those experiences. Paul captured it perfectly in Philippians 3:12 – 14
I admit that I haven’t yet acquired the absolute fullness that I’m pursuing, but I run with passion so that I may reach the purpose that Jesus Christ has called me to fulfil and wants me to discover. I don’t depend on my own strength to accomplish this; however, I do have one compelling focus: I forget all of the past as I fasten my heart to the future instead. I run straight for the divine invitation of reaching the heavenly goal and gaining the victory-prize through the anointing of Jesus.
My fingers have been burnt multiple times in different aspects of life. I will not wrap my fingers in bandage and refuse to do anything because of fear of being burnt again. Instead, I will heal and learn from the experience and ensure I don’t get burnt in the same way again.
During some of the low ‘valley moments’ that we experience, we may not be able to see beyond the boundaries of where we are. In such times, I believe the best counsel is for us to put our hands in God’s hands and let him lead us, one step at a time. Most times, we may not be aware of the end game, just like Joseph was not aware that he was going to eventually rub shoulders with royalty when he was sold by his brothers. He lived his life glorifying God, one day at a time, bearing no grudges as he moved along. Reaching new heights as a servant and a prisoner before he eventually got to the palace. He never let the bad moments drive him to despair, laziness or mediocrity. He always showed up.
We also have a few examples of people that were too attached to their rear-view mirrors and they didn’t go too far that way. Lot’s wife is one example. Another example is the group of Israelites that left Egypt for the Promised Land. Over 600,000 men with their families left Egypt. Sadly, only 2 of those men made it to the Promised Land. Many times, they got offended at God because they compared their experiences on the trail to the ‘luxury’ they had in Egypt
We are at the beginning of a new year – 2021. No matter the cards we were dealt by 2020, we have to move on. We will not make any progress if our vision of the future is constrained by the lens of 2020 stuck to our eyes. The year may have been great. The year may have been ‘ungreat’. It is time to take our eyes off the rear-view mirror and steady ourselves on the forward journey. We have to show up every day, pray, have faith and put our best feet forward in whatever our hands find to do. The same way the Lord was with Joseph as well as the 3 Hebrew boys, He has promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us.
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6
Go through each day with this assurance in mind. God will go with you.
Chidi Ukandu's Blog 