CLOSE THE DOOR


There is a phrase that has the power to derail and delay your ability to live up to your potential. It's a lie that we tell ourselves, and it is the number one reason why people never fully get on the path to a new life when life come crashing down. The phrase is “But first.” “Lord, I will follow you, BUT FIRST let me do this one other thing.” Have you ever said this phrase? I know that I have, more times than I can count. For example: “I’m going to get serious about my health and start eating right, BUT FIRST, let me get through month, because it’s the holiday season coming up and family is coming in, and there will be so much food, so I’ll start right after that.

Here's the brutal truth. As long as you're saying, "Not now, but first, maybe later," you'll never get around to doing what you know you need to do. And the problem is that we do this in every area of life, in matters much more serious than just our waistline. Jesus said in Luke 9:62, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” Jesus isn't being unfair or harsh. He's just being practical. This is a basic and unchangeable principle of how the world works. You can't move in this direction if you're still looking in that direction.
Is there something in your life that is keeping you away from the life God wants you to live? As long as you're looking behind you, you're not prepared for the life God wants to give you. Start taking steps, every day, in the direction you want to go. You need to put as much distance as possible between you and the past so that its arms can't reach and its voice can no longer be heard. You create that distance one day at time, by placing your hand on the plow, by looking straight ahead, taking another step forward.

Whenever you hear yourself use the phrase "not now, maybe later, but first," stop, take a look around because you'll never close the door on the past as long as you're using the phrase, "but first." Give it up. Make the decision you know you need to make. Jesus is calling you to close the door on the past and open the door to now and the life he has in store for you.

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