Grace to Leave the Past Behind
Scripture
“Remember Lot’s wife.”
Luke 17:32 (ESV)
Reflection
Movement always confronts memory. When God releases grace for movement, the first resistance we often face is not external opposition, but internal attachment to the past.
Every one of us has a past. Some of it was good. Some of it painful. Some of it deeply formative. But Scripture is clear that not everything from the past is meant to travel with us into the future. For the future God is calling us into to emerge, certain things must be left behind.
Lot’s wife did not simply glance backward. The Hebrew word used for “looked back” speaks of longing, attachment, and lingering desire. Her heart was still entangled with Sodom. Though her feet were moving forward, her affections were fixed behind her. And Scripture tells us she became a pillar of salt, a boundary marker between what was and what could have been.
Salt preserves what is dead. God was not calling her to preserve the past, but to step into safety and new life. Yet the fear of losing comfort, identity, and familiarity held her captive.
Grace uproots what cannot travel with destiny. When God moves a person forward, something or someone is often left behind. Culture, habits, mindsets, even relationships that once served a purpose may no longer fit the future God is unfolding.
Jesus echoed this warning when He said that in times of divine movement, the one in the field must not turn back, and the one on the housetop must not return for possessions. The call is clear. Do not cling to what God is asking you to release.
Movement requires faith to let go. Grace empowers us to leave the past without preserving it.
Reflection Questions
1. What parts of my past am I still emotionally attached to?
2. Where might God be asking me to leave behind comfort, culture, or familiarity?
3. What would it look like to trust God with what I fear losing?
Father, thank You for Your grace that calls me forward. Show me where I am still holding on to what You are asking me to release. Break the fear of leaving the past behind. Help me trust that what You have prepared for me is greater than what I am leaving. I choose movement over memory and obedience over comfort. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Scripture References
Luke 17:31–32, Genesis 19:26, Philippians 3:13–14
Scripture
“Remember Lot’s wife.”
Luke 17:32 (ESV)
Reflection
Movement always confronts memory. When God releases grace for movement, the first resistance we often face is not external opposition, but internal attachment to the past.
Every one of us has a past. Some of it was good. Some of it painful. Some of it deeply formative. But Scripture is clear that not everything from the past is meant to travel with us into the future. For the future God is calling us into to emerge, certain things must be left behind.
Lot’s wife did not simply glance backward. The Hebrew word used for “looked back” speaks of longing, attachment, and lingering desire. Her heart was still entangled with Sodom. Though her feet were moving forward, her affections were fixed behind her. And Scripture tells us she became a pillar of salt, a boundary marker between what was and what could have been.
Salt preserves what is dead. God was not calling her to preserve the past, but to step into safety and new life. Yet the fear of losing comfort, identity, and familiarity held her captive.
Grace uproots what cannot travel with destiny. When God moves a person forward, something or someone is often left behind. Culture, habits, mindsets, even relationships that once served a purpose may no longer fit the future God is unfolding.
Jesus echoed this warning when He said that in times of divine movement, the one in the field must not turn back, and the one on the housetop must not return for possessions. The call is clear. Do not cling to what God is asking you to release.
Movement requires faith to let go. Grace empowers us to leave the past without preserving it.
Reflection Questions
1. What parts of my past am I still emotionally attached to?
2. Where might God be asking me to leave behind comfort, culture, or familiarity?
3. What would it look like to trust God with what I fear losing?
Father, thank You for Your grace that calls me forward. Show me where I am still holding on to what You are asking me to release. Break the fear of leaving the past behind. Help me trust that what You have prepared for me is greater than what I am leaving. I choose movement over memory and obedience over comfort. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Scripture References
Luke 17:31–32, Genesis 19:26, Philippians 3:13–14
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