Even the Good Old Days Can Keep You Stuck

Why God asks us to forget the past—so we don’t miss what He’s doing now

Over the years I have learned that in order to experience new things the old needs to go. Good old and bad old. Reliving the glory days rarely produces good fruit, unless you’re doing it to change your physiology to about 4–50 years younger. But that’s a whole different discussion.

A lone traveler treks through a snowy landscape, moving towards the glowing promise of the year 2026.

Why the Past Keeps Us Stuck

While pondering this idea, releasing all the things, the Lord graciously reminded me of His word, several actually, where He commands us to forget the past and to press on to new things. He sealed the desire in me to do so when He taught me that when we speak about something that happened in the past, good or bad, we never leave the past. Especially if we ruminate on it over and over and over again.

Even talking about the past that was good for you, the ‘good ole days,’ is somewhat damaging to your future. You know the guys who peaked in high school? How they just can’t seem to stop living in that era, talking about those times, and even listening to that same old music?

That.

Talking about how you used to be, do and have ___, only cements your beautiful feet to that time when you were, did, and had.

Talking about a negative event that happened is even worse because you end up reliving that experience all over again.

Every loss, again.Every heartbreak, again.Every sorrow, again.

The Mind Was Never Meant to Live Back There

Positive or negative, the brain and mind stay right there in the past because you keep telling them to by talking about it. The mind should be our obedient servant.

The word of God says in Isaiah 43, “Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing…”

God always gives the reason to listen to His will and ways, doesn’t He?

In this case, it is simply, forget the past because I am doing something new!

Forget the glory days and forget the horror stories. All of that doesn’t even matter. Why? Because God has promised to do something new.

The Lord has promised to restore what has been broken and/or lost. The Lord has also promised that our latter days can be greater than our former.

But it is impossible to receive the new if we’re clinging onto the old.

The Stories We Carry

Let’s go a little deeper:

Some of what we remember isn’t even events — it’s the stories we formed around them!

Stories about why something happened. Stories about what it means about us.

Stories we repeat internally until they feel like truth.

As humans, we attempt, often in vain, to make sense of the negative things that happen.

Told long enough, these stories become the very thing that limits us from receiving what we know God has promised.

“I should be further along by now.”

“This always happens to me."

“I missed my chance."

“I have to stay guarded.”

Moving Forward Unencumbered

The scripture in Isaiah isn’t about pretending something didn’t happen, it’s about recognizing that no matter how bad or good former things were, we’re to move forward unencumbered into His gorgeous new happenings in our lives.

Today, I invite you to examine the stories you carried through 2025. Stories are powerful. They shape our expectations and emotional responses. However, not every story deserves to live rent-free in your head.

God is doing something new; He always is. New things often require new vision, mindset, and even language.

What “new” is He doing in your life?

What are the “former” things you need to let go of before you’re able to see and experience the new?

Join me tomorrow as we chat about becoming unhindered and what it really means to release what’s behind you.