IT’S TIME FOR SOME REFLECTION ON MY DIRECTION!

…Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see. Their minds are shut, and they cannot think. ¹⁹ The person who made the idol never stops to reflect, “Why, it’s just a block of wood! I burned half of it for heat and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat. How can the rest of it be a god? Should I bow down to worship a piece of wood?” ²⁰ The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes. He trusts something that can’t help him at all. Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, “Is this idol that I’m holding in my hand a lie?” Isaiah 44:18b-20 (NLT)

THREE DIRECTIONS THE BIBLE FINDS WORTHY OF MY REFLECTION:

REFLECTION DIRECTION 1 – My PAST. 

Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. ²⁷ But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.1 Corinthians 1:26-27 (CEV)

REFLECTION DIRECTION 2 – My FUTURE. 

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. ¹⁹ For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. ²² We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. ²³ Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. ²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. Romans 8:18-25 (NIV)

REFLECTION DIRECTION 3 – My PRESENT. 

I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. ¹³ 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, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12b-14 (NIV)

 DO’S & DON’TS AS I REFLECT ON THE PAST, PRESENT, & FUTURE:

DO TAKE MY TIME AS I ASSESS MY LIFE’S DIRECTION.

Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts. Proverbs 4:23 (GNT)

DO NOT IGNORE, AVOID, OR WASTE HURTS FROM MY PAST.

You have experienced many things. Were all those experiences wasted? I hope not! Galatians 3:4 (ICB)

DO LEARN FROM THE PAST & AVOID PITFALLS.

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. Romans 15:4 (NIV)

DO NOT DWELL IN THE PAST OR HYPERFOCUS ON NEGATIVES.

But the Lord says, “Do not cling to events of the past or dwell on what happened long ago. Watch for the new thing I am going to do. It is happening already–you can see it now!” Isaiah 43:18-19a (GNT)

DO HUMBLY FACE UP TO MY PAST & SHARE MY BURDENS.

A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful. But if he confesses and forsakes them, he gets another chance. Proverbs 28:13 (TLB)

DO NOT PLAY THE VICTIM CARD OR THROW A PITY PARTY.

Don’t give up and be helpless in times of trouble. Proverbs 24:10 (CEV)

DO COUNT ON GOD’S PROMISES AS I HOPE FOR THE FUTURE.

We should make plans—counting on God to direct us. Proverbs 16:9 (TLB)

DO NOT FORGET THE GOODNESS OF GOD IN MY LIFE.

So remember where you were before you fell. Change your hearts and do what you did at first. If you do not change, I will come to you and will take away your lampstand from its place. Revelation 2:5 (NCV)

DO PRIORITIZE THE ETERNAL & PREPARE FOR THE FUTURE.

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. ¹¹ Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives ¹² as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.^[b] That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. ¹³ But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells. ¹⁴ So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. 2 Peter 3:10-14 (NIV)

DO NOT DELAY OR PUT OFF WHAT GOD IS CALLING ME TO DO.

If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done. Ecclesiastes 11:4 (TLB)

Therefore, if anyone is united with the Messiah, he is a new creation — the old has passed; look, what has come is fresh and new! 2 Corinthians 5:17 (CJB)

God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. Psalm 51:10 (MSG)