Not long ago I was riding my bicycle near my home. The route I chose was fairly congested with traffic, so I opted to ride on the sidewalk rather than the bike lane. Riding precariously close to a chain link fence on a narrow sidewalk goes against my better judgment, but I threw caution to the wind in order to avoid a potential hazard.
At one point, I committed an unpardonable sin by turning around to check my husband’s progress behind me. That’s when the unthinkable happened. With head over my shoulder focusing on the action behind me, my handlebars clipped the chain link fence, stuck and held. Not so for the rest of my body. With assistance from Mr. Gravity I was propelled forward into the street and into the path of an oncoming car.
It was one of those occasions that time stood still. I could see the events unfolding in super slow motion; my thoughts imagining the worst. Luckily for me, the driver of the oncoming car was able to stop in plenty of time to avoid disaster; even pausing long enough to laugh at me. Ouch! That hurt more than the fall.
Picking myself up, I dusted off my bruised ego and my husband and I continued our ride. The pulled muscle in my derrière and my hamstring barely registered as my embarrassment superseded all else.
Nursing my aching posterior the next day, I had ample time to sit and think about my colossal mistake. I was reminded of the Apostle Paul’s words in Philippians 3:13-14 which says:
No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
Paul instructs us to forget the past (or what lies behind us) and press on towards what God has called us to. Whenever we are engaged in something new – be it a project, relationship, or a new ministry — we shouldn’t let our past regrets, disasters or sins keep us from moving forward.
The enemy delights in reminding of us our past failures to keep us from being productive and used by God. If we know that God is calling us to something new, we must trust that He will equip us for the task. We must believe He will give us the wherewithal to learn from our past without being tripped up by it.
Again, the Apostle Paul says it better than I ever could: This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT)
Check your rearview mirror from time to time; just don’t become so fixated or fearful of your past or what’s behind you that you miss the off ramp for your future and what lies ahead.
Blessings in Christ,
Kathy K.
I admire the fact that you even ride a bike!
Kathy, you have such an amazing ability to make me laugh and cry and to inspire me, all in a few paragraphs. I’m sorry about your nalgas (go look it up), but I’m glad you’re ok.
And, I’m with Thora; I’d be a nervous wreck riding a bike on the street. You’re my hero, in so many ways.
Just what I needed to hear today. You are on brave woman.