FORGET IT! FORGET YOUR FAILURES AND MOVE ON TOWARD YOUR DREAMSBy James M. Becher

FORGET IT! FORGET YOUR FAILURES AND MOVE ON TOWARD YOUR DREAMS.
It is a fact of life that all of us will inevitably fail
in something in someway at sometime along the bumpy road
of life. As illustrated by our first poem (above), when this happens, we need to be able to forget it and move on toward our dreams and goals. If you've sinned, ask for and accept God's forgiveness and then forgive yourself.
To quote Steve Goodier, Publisher@LifeSupportSystem.com, "Unfortunately, no delete key can correct the past so that memories no longer hurt, frighten or humiliate. The past is what it is -- past. And that, too, is good to remember. It is past. Over. Finished. There is no taking it back, yet no purpose is served in re-living and rehashing old memories. It is gone. Let it be a teacher. Let us learn from its harsh les¬sons as well as its joys. Then let us leave it where it be¬longs -- in the past."
Robert H. Schuler tells of a shocking experience he had when a car dealer friend insisted he drive a demonstration model, and when he put the car in reverse, suddenly the digital odometer started registering the MPH in reverse.
As he says, "In times of defeat, it's easy to think of going backwards. If we're going backwards, let's not count it! The secret of success is to look ahead."
To quote Norman Vincent Peale:
"One of the most important of all skills is that of forgetting. It is said a man is what he...eats. A man is what he forgets. ...to be happy and successful you must cultivate the ability to say to yourself--forget it! Memory is one of our greatest facilities, [and] It is a great skill to be able to be selective and say, 'I will hold this...this other, I will cast from me."
Why is this so important? Because, and I speak from
experience, if you don't, the memories and regrets will eat at your mind like a cancer and will paralyze your progress to the extent that you will never be able to move ahead.
And, after all, the failure you are remembering with so much regret may not be as big of a setback as you think.
To quote the mother superior in "The Sound of Music," when the Lord closes a door, He opens a window." But we will never see the window if we are focused upon the closed door.
But, what can we do, if, having tried to forget it, the
thoughts persist in our mind? To further quote from Dr. Peale:
"There are only 2 things to do:
(1)do everything you reasonably can about it,
(2) then practice forgetting it. Walk away from it
in your thoughts. Conceive of it as lying back there growing ever more dim against the horizon as each day carries you further from it."
But, not only must we walk away from the old, but walk toward the new. Start filling your mind with new ideas and prospects for success. If you find your mind blank, try praying. Ask God to fill your mind with fresh new ideas.
Then trust that He will. (See Phil.3:13, our verse for the week listed in the Quotes section below).