Daily Maxwell, Scripture, and Quote
All All MECA BackblastsJuly 6th, 2017
Daily Maxwell 07/06/17
THE PAST IMPACTS THE PRESENT
A few years ago, I heard my friend Chuck Swindoll tells the story of Chippie the parakeet. He said the bird’s problems began when the woman who owned him decided to clean up the seeds and loose feathers from the bottom of his cage using a vacuum. When the phone rang, the owner turned to pick it up, and—you guessed it—with a thud and a whoosh, Chippie was gone.
The owner quickly turned off the vacuum and unzipped the bag. There was Chippie. He was stunned but breathing.
Seeing that he was covered with black dust, his owner rushed Chippie to the bathtub, where she turned on the faucet full blast and held the bird under the icy water.
At that point she realized that she’d done even more damage, and she quickly cranked up her blow dryer and gave the wet, shivering little parakeet a blast. Chuck finished the story by saying, “Chippie doesn’t sing much anymore . . .
” People who are unable to overcome the past are a little like Chippie. They allow their negative experiences to color the way they live.
It may sound as if I’m making light of what may have happened to you in the past. I’m not. I know that people suffer genuine tragedies in this imperfect world. They lose children, spouses, parents, and friends—sometimes under horrible circumstances. People contract cancer, multiple sclerosis, AIDS, and other debilitating diseases. They suffer unspeakable abuses at the hands of others. But tragedies don’t have to stop a person from possessing a positive outlook, being productive, and living life to the fullest. No matter how dark a person’s past is, it need not color his present permanently.
—Failing Forward
IN WHAT WAY IS YOUR PAST COLORING YOUR PRESENT?
Today’s Scripture
Philippians 3:12-14
Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Today’s Quote
The truth is, unless you let go, unless you forgive yourself, unless you forgive the situation, unless you realize that the situation is over, you cannot move forward.
Steve Maraboli