An online sister in Christ who happens to live in the United Kingdom (Linda Van Heerden) recently sent me an article which has moved me enough that I wish to share it with you as a HEART TALK…my heart speaking to yours (hopefully). And, if it does, I would be thrilled to hear from you.
LOOKING FORWARD
(Read Philippians 3:13)
One day, in an orchard, seven-year-old Walter noticed an owl sleeping on a branch. Thinking it would make a wonderful pet he approached quietly and grabbed its leg. In a flurry of beating wings, wild eyes and frightening cries, the bird struggled so the boy threw it down and stamped it to death. Horrified by his actions, he fled. When he returned later to bury it, each shovel full of earth was mixed with tears of regret. The incident haunted him and he told no one about it – till years later when it awakened in him a fresh appreciation for life. All the promises in the world could not bring back that one owl, but through its death a world of animals was born. The boy is gone, but his legacy lives on in the drawings of Walter Elias, also known as Walt Disney.
Charles Dickens said, ‘Reflect on your blessings of which every man has plenty, not on your past misfortunes of which all men have some.’ Learn from your past, then ‘FOCUS ON LOOKING FORWARD.’ Paul Harvey writes: “The relationships we have entered, stayed in, or ended, taught us important lessons. Some of us have emerged from painful circumstances with strong insights about who we are and what we want. Our mistakes are necessary! Our frustrations, failures…stumbling attempts at growth and progress, necessary too! Each step of the way we learned. We went through exactly what we needed to become what we are today. Is your past a mistake? No. Your mistake is mistaking that for the truth.’ God can ‘reframe’ your past in the light of the grace and mercy that brought you to where you are today. So learn from it and move on. End quote.
The lesson for us to learn from this story and from the wisdom shared by Charles Dickens and Paul Harvey is one that truly needs to be learned by all. We’ve all “killed our owl” at some point in our life. Mistakes are common to the human element in all of us. No person has lived in this world without making mistakes…bad choices. And, we have lived with regret, horrified by bad choices…which always have painful consequences. It is encouraging to know that WE WENT THROUGH EXACTLY WHAT WE NEEDED TO GO THROUGH IN ORDER TO BECOME WHAT WE ARE TODAY. How encouraging it is to know that in those valleys of our life, our GOD is there. How encouraging to know that HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT and that “His mercy endureth forever.”
As I close, I am encouraged by Mr. Harvey’s question and his answer: “Is your past a mistake?” His answer was a resounding “No!” And, he really sealed it with “Your mistake is mistaking that for the truth” – your past is a mistake. Never! We fail so that we will learn to not make the same choice in the future. We fall in order to understand our fallibility and our need for God’s strong hand to lift us up. We hurt so that we may learn to feel the pain of others. OUR PAST IS NOT A MISTAKE! Thank God for all the lessons that we have learned from our bad choices.