Looking in the rear view mirror
Ever tried driving down the interstate or a city street looking only in the rear view mirror? Not a good idea. I remember when I was learning to drive my instructor told me to glance periodically in my rear view mirror as well as my side mirrors. I remember thinking, "Man, that's a lot of looking behind and beside me." I just wanted to drive. While there is wisdom in looking to see what's behind us, we can't drive forward very long staring into those mirrors. We'll cause damage as we move forward because we're not paying attention what is in front of us.
I wonder how much I do that in my own life. Do I stare into the "rear view mirror" of my life to the destruction of what is right in front of me and what's down the road in the future ahead of me? At times, I do. Regret, guilt, shouldas, wouldas, and couldas all cause me to look backward too much. It's important to look back periodically and pay attention to the past. Being a history major in college I have to tell you that! But I do believe it. If we forget our history, we're bound to repeat it. But glancing back can also help us move safely into the future too.
Once when I was 16 I gave Lee a ride home from football practice. I remember it being a cool, rainy fall evening in October. We drove down state route 18 listening to music and talking about stuff when all of a sudden, I glanced into my rear view mirror and saw a state highway patrolman behind me, lights flashing. "S***! Cop." We both reach for our seatbelts and click them in as I eased over to the berm.
"My mom's gonna kill me," I kept thinking as the patolman walked towards our car. He made me get out and sit in his car as he worked up the ticket. "Did you two have your seatbelts on?" he asked. "Ummm..." hesitation. "....no." He didn't think so. He had seen our hands grow out of left and right shoulders as we reached for the seatbelts. Strike two. Strike one was I was speeding on wet roads, and on top of that, we weren't wearing seatbelts. Yikes.
So, is it important to look behind? Yes, to a point. Sometimes we learn from what's behind us so that we can move safely into the future.
But, I wonder if I and some of us live too much looking in the rear view? Maybe Paul's words will help move us boldly into the present and future God has planned, "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things...let us live up to what we have already attained." Philippians 3:13-16
I wonder how much I do that in my own life. Do I stare into the "rear view mirror" of my life to the destruction of what is right in front of me and what's down the road in the future ahead of me? At times, I do. Regret, guilt, shouldas, wouldas, and couldas all cause me to look backward too much. It's important to look back periodically and pay attention to the past. Being a history major in college I have to tell you that! But I do believe it. If we forget our history, we're bound to repeat it. But glancing back can also help us move safely into the future too.
Once when I was 16 I gave Lee a ride home from football practice. I remember it being a cool, rainy fall evening in October. We drove down state route 18 listening to music and talking about stuff when all of a sudden, I glanced into my rear view mirror and saw a state highway patrolman behind me, lights flashing. "S***! Cop." We both reach for our seatbelts and click them in as I eased over to the berm.
"My mom's gonna kill me," I kept thinking as the patolman walked towards our car. He made me get out and sit in his car as he worked up the ticket. "Did you two have your seatbelts on?" he asked. "Ummm..." hesitation. "....no." He didn't think so. He had seen our hands grow out of left and right shoulders as we reached for the seatbelts. Strike two. Strike one was I was speeding on wet roads, and on top of that, we weren't wearing seatbelts. Yikes.
So, is it important to look behind? Yes, to a point. Sometimes we learn from what's behind us so that we can move safely into the future.
But, I wonder if I and some of us live too much looking in the rear view? Maybe Paul's words will help move us boldly into the present and future God has planned, "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us who are mature should take such a view of things...let us live up to what we have already attained." Philippians 3:13-16
posted by Mike Weaver at 9:15 AM
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