“Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed, saying, ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “Return now from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.”’ But they did not listen or pay attention to Me,” declares the Lord.

Zechariah 1:4

God has called for repentance and offered grace over and over. We as His people must be willing to learn from the sins of the past generations and chose to listen to Him when he says to come back to Him.

Hindsight is useful; when things are over it is so much easier to point to mistakes and really determine what to avoid. “Don’t be like your fathers.” Where you come from does not have to determine your future, but failing to recognize your past will complicate things in ways that you can’t foresee.

Dwelling on the past can have a consequence of its own; those who yearn for the glory days or even pity a past that has long gone away are not minding their step on the path forward. We must allow grace to carry past mistakes and humility to hold past successes so that we can walk unburdened toward the Goal.

Listen, God is calling. “Turn away now.” Will we pay attention?

Ethan Kirl

Originally Published June 10, 2021