Hi, I am Seth Dahl, Christian author and minister of Bethel Church in Austin, TX. Thank you for joining us on God Today. We are so glad you are a part of these videos. We can serve and love on you, and bless you during your day.
I am one of those people that likes to look anywhere and everywhere for what God is saying to me. Sometimes I find His word in a movie, or a billboard, or out of a song, or from a friend. But I know a couple of things. I know that God is always talking and I know He can hide His word anywhere.
One time, in particular, I was looking for His word was when I was really struggling with regret over a poor decision I had made. Actually, it wasn’t a poor decision, it was a sin. I wasn’t just struggling, I was full-on depressed. I was beating myself up, burdened with shame, a dark cloud was over my head. And my wife, who was my girlfriend at the time, she and I walked into a used book store because we were waiting to get a table at a nearby restaurant. And I just started looking at every book title to just try to find what God was saying to me.
Eventually, I headed into the used CD section, and immediately I saw 5 of the exact same CDs. I pulled one out, looked at it, and it was from Hootie & The Blowfish. It was called Cracked Rearview. Immediately God spoke to me. He said, “You have been looking at your past in a cracked rearview mirror and it has forced you to look longer than you need to. It has also distorted your past so you don’t see clearly, you don’t see it the way I do. Plus, if you are looking in the mirror too long you will crash. Because the only way to move forward into what I have for you is to look to the windshield, not to look in the mirror.”
Instantly, I was free. All the guilt, the shame, the fear, all of the clouds that were above my head just lifted completely off. I was clear, I felt so much better because I got the Word of the Lord instead of the thoughts of the enemy. I started looking at my past through the blood of Jesus, not through a cracked rearview mirror.
So, I want to encourage you today. No matter what has happened in the past – you don’t want to look at it through a cracked rearview mirror. You don’t want to look at it longer than you should. You don’t want to look at it through a distorted lens, through a distorted point of view. You want to see it the way God does. And that’s through the blood of Jesus.
Let me pray for you and then we will bless you on your day. Lord, I pray that all of us would be able to see our pasts through the blood of Jesus, we would be able to be thankful for what you’ve done. You have taken care of it, you have sorted it out, you have forgiven us, God. Thank you so much that your blood has wiped away every sin, your blood has covered a multitude of sins in our lives. And we can move forward into what you have for us because we are looking forward, we are not looking at the past, staring at the past through any cracked rearview mirror. Thank you, Father, thank you, Jesus, so much for your blood. And I pray also, God, that every person here will be able to not only look but listen for what you are saying. And that it would be easy for them to connect to your voice, to disconnect from the voice of the enemy, the thoughts of the enemy, and easily connect with you. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen. Thank you, guys, again, for watching God Today. I hope this has been a blessing to you. Go about your day moving into what God has for you, and nothing else. And we will see you in another video soon.