Guess what—if you’re reading this today, it’s not yesterday anymore! For real! We can act like it’s still yesterday. We can focus on yesterday and get so preoccupied with it that nothing else matters to us. We can talk about it all we want. But once that 24 hours is finished, it can never be yesterday anymore or again.
I was reminded of this in a wonderful way when someone changed the subject line in a group email thread I was part of. The original subject was “Yesterday”. One person had acted wrongly in public and another wrote her the next day to reassure her that she and everything was ok. After a few responses from various group members, one member wisely wrote, “I’m changing the subject to “Filling the Gap”. He was letting everyone know that we had already moved on to solving the root of the problem.
Seeing that made me think—“Yeah, it’s not yesterday anymore!” It was no longer the subject we needed to address. It was time to move on—time to make long-lasting changes that would bring good out of something that started bad.
I’m so glad this doesn’t just apply to email subjects—it applies to LIFE! Yesterday is over. Let’s change the subject!
Granted, our yesterdays do affect our todays and tomorrows. Someone failed a test yesterday, and now they have a bad grade. Someone burst out in anger at their workplace yesterday, the boss found out, and now they’re on probation. Or, worse yet, they got fired. Someone committed a crime yesterday, and faces charges and a prison sentence today. Or…(fill in the blank…). Yesterday’s foul-ups do lead to today’s consequences, and sadly, often mess up tomorrow in the process.
BUT—it never has to stay that way! Yesterdays end. Whatever we did wrong yesterday can end too. We don’t have to keep doing it. WE CAN CHANGE! This means things can change! How?
- Relationships can be restored—one better, changed, interaction at a time.
- Careers can be restored—even if someone loses their job, they can prove their improved character and competence at another (perhaps better) workplace.
- Lives can be restored—students can improve their study habits and get those better grades for better prospects. Ex-cons can turn their lives around and get a second chance. We get more chances, with every breath we take and every choice we make.
What does it take?
- Recognition that yesterday is over. We don’t have to continue to live in it.
- Realization that the hard work of changing is worth the pain and difficulty— it definitely beats staying stuck in yesterday’s ways with yesterday’s results.
- Receiving HELP. Don’t go it alone. If we could change on our own, we would have already done it! Go to the Lord— tap into His limitless power, love, and wisdom– to give you the spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical resources you need to change. Then, go to the right people for support, accountability, and encouragement to keep using those resources for positive change.
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Lam. 3:22-23.
The guy who wrote this (Jeremiah) was in the middle of writing a whole book about how bad things were, and yet he was counting on God’s mercy and help every new day!
Where do you want to see change in your life? Thank God He changes the subject of our lives every day– It’s no longer yesterday!
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