Have you ever been scrolling through social media and come across something that makes you stop and think?
That happened to me yesterday when I came across a video where someone asked the following question: Would you rather lose all of your memories, or never be able to make any new ones?
I knew which one I would choose, but I was curious what some of the men I know would say, so I started texting them. Their answers were split evenly down the middle. Some would keep every memory they had, while others were willing to let go of older memories if it meant they could make new one's.
What I appreciated most was how honest everyone was. Nobody tried to give the “right” answer, and nobody felt the need to turn it into a deep spiritual discussion. They just answered based on what mattered most to them.
Before I continue, let me make something completely clear: neither answer is wrong.
If we chose to keep our memories, it probably means we value the people, lessons, and experiences that helped get us to where we are today. If we choose to make new memories, it probably means we have a heart that looks ahead to what is next. God built our minds to appreciate both.
As I looked at the answers, I started thinking about why the question had gotten my attention in the first place. It wasn't really about choosing between the past and the future. It was showing me something about how we live.
There is nothing wrong with remembering where we've been, and there is nothing wrong with looking ahead to what comes next. The trouble begins when either one starts controlling us. We can become so focused on what happened that we miss what God is doing now, or look so far ahead that we forget what God has already done.
Either way, we can lose sight of God.
I know that feeling. I faced it myself years ago when I had to make a decision that would change my life.
Before I moved to another state, Boston was all I knew. It was home. My family was there, my memories were there, and everything familiar to me was there. So what was the point of leaving, right? I told myself there was no better place for me, but if I'm being honest, that wasn't the whole truth.
I was afraid.
Leaving meant walking away from everything I knew. I had no idea what life would look like on the other side of Boston, so it was easy to convince myself that staying was the right choice. But I was only fooling myself.
Eventually, I found the courage to move. And when I moved, God moved even more.
Sometimes we tell ourselves, “This is where I'm supposed to be,” when what we're really saying is, “I'm afraid to find out what happens if I leave.” That can make it hard to let go, even when God is calling us into something new.
Isaiah 43:18-19 says: “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!”
I used to think God was telling His people to forget what came before. Now I see that He was telling them not to miss what He was doing next. Our past matters. We should remember what God has done, but we also have to leave room for what He wants to do next.
If we could choose to forget everything that happened before today, we wouldn't just forget the difficult parts of our lives. We would also forget the people who were there for us, the lessons we learned, the things that made us laugh, and the times God helped us through what we thought we couldn't handle.
For those of us who believe in God, there is something even more important we could forget: how faithful He has been.
Psalm 103:2 says: “Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”
Remembering matters. Not so we can live in the past, but so we don't forget who brought us through it.
Paul understood this. His past included things he probably wished he could forget, but he refused to let it define where his life could go. In Philippians 3:13-14, he wrote, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal.”
So the question becomes: Are we staying because God told us to stay, or are we staying because we're afraid to go?
For some of us, our “Boston” isn't a city. It could be a relationship, a job, a routine, an old dream, an old wound, or a version of ourselves we have spent so long being that we can't imagine anything else.
We may not see what's ahead. But God does.
When I left Boston, I thought I was just moving to another state. I had no idea I was stepping into a part of my story God had already seen.
We don't always know what God is doing. He may ask us to stay, lead us somewhere new, or ask us to wait. We don't have to understand it all. We just have to trust Him.
I don't know what tomorrow holds. But I know what happened when I stopped letting fear make my decisions.
I stepped out. And God moved.
That is what I never want to forget.
Not Boston, the move, or even what came next.
God.
When I look back now, I don't see someone who figured everything out. I see a God who was faithful enough to lead me somewhere I couldn't see.
And that's enough for me to trust Him with whatever comes next.
Pray with me
Father God,
Thank You for everything You have brought me through. Help me remember what You have done without letting my past keep me from what You are doing now.
Give me the courage to release what You have asked me to release and the faith to trust You when I cannot see what comes next. Keep my eyes on You.
