Quick- what did you have for lunch yesterday? Where are your sunglasses? How about your car keys?

If you're like me, you had to pause and think... I'm still thinking! I actually can't remember what I had for lunch today, muchless yesterday. And let's just say it's a good thing I have several pair of sunglasses! But, boy can I remember other things. I can readily recall things I feel really guilty about, past sins, or hurtful things people have said to me. I can immediately call to mind things I've done that made me feel proud or accomplished- even if just for a moment or a season in my life.

"But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13-14

"Forgetting what is behind." Sometimes that's so hard, isn't it? I find it interesting that Paul doesn't say we are just supposed to forget the bad things. We are to forget "what is behind," anything from before this moment that might hold us back from pressing ahead. Sometimes those are negative, painful events. It might be past sins we have committed. But it might also be our past righteous acts done in service to the Lord, the "works prepared for us" that we've already done (our "track record") in which we might be tempted to rest instead of seizing fresh, new opportunities to serve Him. Regardless, if we keep holding on to the past, it's harder to "strain toward" what is ahead.

But, some things are so hard to forget! Here are three steps on how to do that, from one of my favorite resources, Loving God With All Your Mind by Elizabeth George. Her advice is so wise and it has really helped me to forget what needs to be forgotten, or to as she puts it, "remember to forget."

Find the Gold. When prospectors would pan for gold, they would scoop up dirt, rocks, sand and silt, and look for what had value. If God has allowed certain events in your life, it must be because it has value. Perhaps it was a character quality it brought forth in you, or an attribute of Himself He wanted to reveal to you. Without become bogged down in the dirt and silt of your past, dig down and look for the gold. Keep what is good and let the rest go. I have felt such joy in "finding the gold" in past situations and circumstances. It truly is like finding treasure! Sometimes I want to celebrate as loudly as they must have during the Gold Rush! But it doesn't stop there:

Find Forgiveness. If some of what you are "digging up" involves sin on your part, ask forgiveness for the sins and for the resulting bad that happened. As 1 John 1:9 promises, God is faithful to forgive. What a promise!

Forgive Others. Once we have found the gold in our situations, and have come to God for cleansing and forgiveness ourselves, we must extend forgiveness to others. To fail to do so is to choose a life of bitterness, which will surely hold us back from "pressing on toward the goal." If, after all, the goal is becoming like Christ, then we must forgive as He did.

Mrs. George says, "With the gold gleaned from the past, and forgiveness both extended and received, you can now reach forward and tackle the challenges of the present with all your energy."