Moving Forwards. Into the New
Death and all his friends paid a visit again. This time, my aunt, my mom’s youngest sister, walked from earth to eternity.
And as it was with the previous loss of close family, her passing also forced me to stop and reflect…
The same emotions of shock, numbness and loss were back. But this time the “why’s“ felt more.
Recently, I read the following verse in Isaiah 43:
But forget all that— it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.
Isaiah 43:18 – NLT
In context, this verse and chapter is a promise to the tribe of Judah taken into exile into Babylon, an exile that would eventually last 70 years.
So the tribe of Judah, as a people, also experienced grief, hurt and pain, and maybe even felt the loss of a loved one along the road to Babylon.
The story then turns in this verse, where God declares that the past does not end there, and that the past is in the past, that we must keep moving forward.
That’s easy to say, but what if you are in a tough season?
Always keep that person you have lost in remembrance, but do not allow the loss of the person to cause you to be stuck in the past based on your perceived “better days”.
To be honest, this time around, losing someone to death, has left me fatigued, especially with the world facing a pandemic together for the first time in 102 years, and being a part of that season as well.
It’s in this time where I asked myself, “why am I placed in this season again, when it feels like I am alone and on the fringes, whilst others fall in love, and even get married? or are just in happy, healthy relationships?”.
Yes, there is a whole lot I can do to change the outcomes of the season, but the essential question to ask myself, “should I force anything?”.
Maybe the purpose of the season is teaching me to slow down instead of accelerating to full speed again.
To find complete rest and peace, you have to wind down, even when the world around you wants to accelerate to getting back to normality.
Circling back to Isaiah 43:18, it also tells me about what we considered normal previously, we have to let go of, as God wants to establish new roads in the desert and new rivers in the wasteland (vs 19).
And what it signifies is that wherever in the situation you find yourself in, that God Himself, can create and set out a path or way out of the situation and set you on course in accordance to His perfect Will and purpose for your life.
Furthermore, rivers in the Bible are often symbols of quenching thirst, for the land of Israel is in a semi-desert climate, with droughts not unknown to them, however the growth and prosperity of the agriculture of Israel is fed from river streams out of the Golan heights, flowing south.
Thus the river God wants to establish in your life speaks of prosperity and of blessings overflowing.
May you experience God’s peace when you pause and slow down, even when going through a tough season.
May you experience that God’s will for you is to no longer linger on the past things, but for you to keep on moving forward into all what He had for you.
And, may you see Him establish new roads and pathways in your life where there were none and that He, Himself, will be the river which refreshes you and showers you with favor and prosperity.
Beautiful piece Tian.
Thanks for writing this.
I have shared with a relative in Zimbabwe who lost a family member.
God bless you.
You write with so much depth
My relative in Zimbabwe read it and said
” It’s really uplifting. Death is not easy. This may help me in coping. His death was so unnecessary. Thanks again.”