Looking Back and Looking Forward…

We have two rescue puppies who are a huge part of our life. Buddy is Denise’s 15+ years old Chihuahua-Terrier mix. Pixie is a 3 year old Chihuahua. Our good friend (also a member of the church and a Vet) Dr Jay Blackwood, gave Pixie to me after he had rescued her from a horrible situation. Our two puppies are a constant source of love and amusement to Denise and to me.

Denise took this picture of Pixie this morning just before we began our Morning Prayer in our Prayer Room in what used to be a Florida Porch. Pixie is seen at Buddy’s food dish, joyfully gobbling up what was left after he had his breakfast. Now in all fairness, Pixie has her dish in another room and Buddy often raids her dish if she turns her nose up at her food. The silly puppies seem to enjoy stealing each other’s food! It reminds me of the saying, “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.”  Buddy thinks Pixie’s food is better than his and Pixie thinks Buddy’s food is better than hers!

So, as we watched Pixie joyfully eating Buddy’s food, both of us remarked how like the New Year this was. The balance between looking back at the past with longing (the grass is ALWAYS greener you know) and looking at what is in front of us in the present and the future.

We stand on the cusp of a new year. The year 2014 is nearly finished and the year 2015 is about to begin. So the question for us is this: Do we look to the past with regret for what has happened or with longing for what has been and is no more; or do we look to the future with hope for what God has planned for us?

Pixie and Buddy seem to think that the food in the other bowl is better than what they have in their own bowl. What they don’t seem to realize is both bowls are filled with food by loving hands just for them! We are on the cusp of a new year. We can choose to look behind us and miss what we no longer have or we can look forward with hope for what God is providing for us.

One of my favorite Scripture verses is John 1:5 — “The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.” I think that if we spend all of our time looking back to the past we miss the opportunity to see what God has placed right in front of us. And from personal experience I can tell you that the grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence. Even though our puppies may think that the other food bowl is better, each bowl is filled with food and love by their Mommy and Daddy who love them very much.

How much more does our Lord love us and shine the light of faith and love on the path before us? So I ask you… Join with Denise and me as we walk into the future with faith-filled hearts, confident that the light will shine on the Path God has given us. And know that God’s light is NEVER overcome by darkness!