Learning Forward

"This year was more organized and seemed to be better than last year. That is good that we are learning and moving forward." 

I have read that in order for a blog, or any endeavor, to be successful that you have to know who you are and who your audience is. You have to know what makes you unique and what you are aiming to say. It has taken a year to get it out but I know that Thoughts From Last Year is a platform to share how we can grow forward from the lessons of our past. 

We all want to be successful and get better at what we do. The amazing thing is that God has given us a tool to learn from called experience. Our failures are redeemable when we learn from them. Edison and many other inventors, leaders, entrepreneurs and others are proof of this. We all can be better today than yesterday. 

It is amazing to me how we often miss this in the lessons of the Bible. Joshua heaped up 12 stones from the middle of the Jordan river to remember the miraculous crossing. No doubt the story of the disobedience 40 years earlier would be told as well. Jesus even taught his disciples lessons by having them remember the experiences of feeding thousands of people with loaves and fishes. (If you don't remember these stories go read your Bible!)

Today's tough times are teachers for tomorrow. Learn forward by being aware of your life. It is easy to miss out and float through life. This is especially true if your life is tough or painful. We like to numb pain and ignore problems with distractions like television and the Internet. It may be time to turn off the tv and put down the smart phone to focus on what you're facing. You should consider writing an account or journaling so that you can go back and remember the lessons you are learning today if you're not already.  

We are all in this together. We have one life to live and God is showing us the lessons every day. History does repeat itself. It is our choice to do it better when it does. 

What lessons have you learned and how did you handle the when they came up again?