Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert… (Isaiah 43:18-19)

A mechanic told me the reason cars last longer than 80,000 miles these days is because of fuel injection and computerized combustion. The older engines were carburetor dependent which caused them to wear out at around 80,000 miles. Cars today last upward of 200,000 miles and get triple the gas mileage. Longing for those old heavy cars is just silly. But, they sure ride good!

Churches change. Have you noticed that? The music of a church changes. Pastors come and go. People die and new members join. Programs end and new programs begin. Books wear out, pews wear out and even people wear out. The church is always changing as time slowly passes. This is very hard for folks to accept as they long to hold onto something in life that has been an anchor in their lives. But, God never intends for His church to stand still.

"Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old." I for one believe the past is important and precious. Just like the Jews, we have history that needs to be remembered and pasted to future generations. When we lose touch with our history we lose touch with our relationship with God

"Behold, I am doing a new thing". God is never idle, nor is He lazy. God is always at work and always dong "new things". We want Him making things new; we want Him working in our lives. We want Him building His church. And, we want our church to live, grow and bloom. Just as every spring the flowers burst into brilliant new color so too do we want that beauty and growth in our church.

When God says, "Remember not the former things" He is saying don’t be tied to those former things. It is very hard to be on a journey following God and stay standing in the same spot. In your life you can remember what it was like to be a child in your parents house but you are no longer a child in your parent’s house. You have a home of your own and children of your own. God is doing a "new" thing in your life. Go with Him, follow and be blessed.