Acts 3:1 ASV

p. 123 of John, The Beloved Disciple -------- "We are no longer under the law and authority of our pasts, but like Peter and John we are also free to use them as they lend expression to our faith in Jesus. ------------ As much as you might not want to hear this, you couldn't become the servant God is calling you to be without the threads of your past being knitted into the Technicolor fabric of your future." ------------------- This is soo much like the Timeline exercise in Focused Living. Beth adds to the timeline concept ... I like what she said. We are not bound by our old selves, our sins, our past, our failures, even not bound by our past successes. God continues to call us forward, ever molding us to be more like Jesus. Our past is part of us, and gives us clues to how God is shaping our future. Our experiences are important, but they don't define us. -------------- I also think of the song "Freedom" by Run Kid Run .... "I keep holding my chains / I'm no longer bound, but here I am"--------------We are free from the tyranny that our past had over us. Yet how often do we stand, lost, not knowing what to do with that freedom. We're not supposed to "know" what to do all by ourselves -- we are not called to be isolated Christians.