Guest post by author Cassie Downs
I read a story about a taxi driver in India by the name of Harpreet Dev. Thirty-year-old Harpreet is known for his reverse driving skills. In his story, he tells us it happened by accident. He had been driving his Fait Padmini, and it had gotten stuck in reverse late one night. “I was outside the city and had no money, so I thought of driving the car backward until Bhatinda,” he said. “Then I drove backward and later on I gained confidence.”
He gained enough confidence that driving in reverse became the only way he drove. At the time they published the article, he had been driving backward everywhere he went for 11 years – pretty impressive. While Harpreet’s driving won him some fame in his hometown, it came at a price – he now suffers from severe back and neck problems. He admitted, “I have got a severe backbone problem from driving so fast in reverse because my whole body gets contorted.”
I’ll admit, Harpreet sounds almost as fascinating as Tow Mater from Disney’s film, Cars. After reading Harpreet’s story, I couldn’t help but think about how much he sacrificed by looking back. Looking in the rearview cost him physically and he would suffer the rest of his life, all for a few years’ fame and fun.
Isn’t it so easy to get stuck looking back when God’s called you to move forward? “The sun had risen over the earth when Lot came to Zoar. Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven, and He overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. But his wife, from behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.” Genesis 19:23-26 CSB
God blessed Lot and his family, allowing them to flee from the wicked city of Sodom and Gomorrah, before God brought destruction upon it. Verse 17 says, “As soon as the angels got them outside, one of them said, ‘Run for your lives! Don’t look back and don’t stop anywhere on the plain! Run to the mountains, or you will be swept away!’”
So they ran. They headed out, but Lot’s wife looked back.
I looked up the Hebrew for “Looked back.” And it means more than to look over one’s shoulder. It means to “regard, to consider, to pay attention to.” I believe Lot’s wife hadn’t left the city, at least not in her heart. God graciously called her out, but in her heart, she hadn’t left, and it cost her. Looking in the rearview stopped Lot’s wife in her tracks and she could not move forward anymore. The past she wanted so much robbed her of the future God had planned for her.
I can’t tell you how many times my past life, past mistakes, and past hurts have tried to keep me from moving forward. But I decline what was for what can be. May we be women who run for our lives and not look back! Trust God is leading you to something new and better. He only wants the very best for His daughters, so let’s not get caught looking in the rearview.
Prayer: God, help me keep my eyes forward. Help me look ahead to all things you have planned for me. There are many things you have called me out of, and I don’t want to forfeit my future by looking back. My family, my friends, and my fellow sisters are counting on me to move forward. Keep my eyes set ahead. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Cassie Downs is a lover of Jesus and her family. She is the author of two books, Chasing Jesus and Unrivaled, both 60-day devotionals. Cassie is also the founder of Everyday Jesus Ministry, is a homeschool mom, and furniture flipper. She resides in Stockton, Mo with her high school sweetheart and husband, Dustin and their three teenagers.
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