The Book of Genesis

Abraham's nephew, presents a conundrum: the one just man in Sodom whose virtue leads God to grant Abraham's wish that Lot and his family be spared from the destructon to be visited upon the cities of the plain has an eventful history: "And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways.

And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night. And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat. But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof. And they said, Stand back.

And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door. The men [the angels] put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door. They smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door. And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son-in-law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law. And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.

And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city. It came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. . . . Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
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From this story in the Holy Bible, this particular verse stood out to me, substantially, “But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.” Perhaps, it is because that is where I often find myself most, when I am in my moment of solitary. I am guilty for always reminiscing the past. And until I learn to let go, I will never allow myself to look forward and accept what is in front of me. Sure, I may try to block the imagery of the haunting memories of what was done and gone with; but each time when the restless mind switches gears, then there I am again living in the moments of those inkling puzzles of what is done. Sometimes I marvel over what went wrong or where did I went wrong, what could I have done differently, or what could I have said to alter the situation that I was in. But the more I think about it, the more I find myself dwindling into a never-ending tunnel of no resolution leaving me bitter and resentful. However, I remind myself to rise from it and let God take care of that essence in my life.

In this account of the Bible, it emphasizes the importance of being obedient to God and not looking back. Reminiscing is only wise when we can utilize our past and learn from those lessons so that we could improve for the better, in our future trials. But to live in the past and reside there indefinitely is certainly not sensible. When we replay the inevitable course of our past incessantly, we tend to lose sight of what is in front of us. We lose focus of the moment and those around us who are more than willing to render love, care, and attention-- that we often times confer no significance to, merely because we are too caught up in living in those memories that could not be reverse.

It is like driving our own vehicle. If we are constantly looking in the rear-view mirror, not only is it obscuring us to stay focus to what is before us-- but also, we are putting ourselves in the risk of danger that may cause a collision. This collision could inadvertently may affect toward those around us, if we don’t drive safely and keep a steady focus of what is front of us. So in this story of Lot, if only his wife would keep on moving forward then she could have been prevented herself, in turning into a pillar of salt. With that, for anyone of us who are perpetually struggling with the past, I hope that this story shall be of an encouragement, to allow you to open your heart to what is in front of you and let go of what is forever gone. God wants us to learn from our mistakes and change for the better with it.  Hence, let the Salt and Light of God’s word as well as the Holy Spirit to be the healing powers to all the things that is in God’s sovereignty, through the atonement of Lord Christ Jesus.



Let us pray

Dear Lord,

I thank You for this day. I thank You for my being able to see and to hear this morning. I'm blessed because You are a forgiving God and an understanding God. You have done so much for me and You keep on blessing me. Forgive me this day for I have sinned. I ask now for Your forgiveness.

Keep me safe from all danger and harm. Let me start this day with a new attitude and plenty of gratitude. Let me make the best of each and every day and give my best in all that is put before me.

Clear my mind that I can hear from You. Broaden my mind that I can accept all things that are of You. Let me not whine and whimper over things I have no control over.

Let me continue to see sin through Your eyes and acknowledge it as evil. And when I sin, let me repent, and confess with my mouth my wrong doing, and receive the forgiveness of God.

And when this world closes in on me, let me remember Jesus' example to slip away and find a quiet place to pray. It's the best response when I'm pushed beyond my limits. I know that when I can't pray out loud, You listen to my heart.

Continue to use me to do Thy Will. Continue to bless me that I may be a blessing to others. Keep me strong that I may help the weak and unsaved.

Keep me uplifted that I may have words of encouragement for others. I pray for those that are lost and can't find their way. I pray for those that are misjudged and misunderstood. I pray for those who refuse to share a word from You. I pray for those who don't know You intimately.

I pray for those that will only read this and not speak this aloud in their own lives. I pray for those that will delete this without sharing it with others. I pray for those that don't believe ... But I thank you that I believe.

I believe that You change people, and I pray for all my sisters and brothers. For each and every family member in their households. I pray for peace, love and joy in their homes that they are out of debt and all their needs are met.

I pray that every eye that reads this knows there is no problem, circumstance, or situation greater than You, Lord. Every battle is in Your hands for You to fight. I pray that these words be received into the hearts of every eye that sees them and every mouth that confesses them willingly.

This is my prayer.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen.

Have we truly let go and let God?