Well it’s the beginning of 2011 and we face the challenge of a New Year.

Thank God we can put the failures of he past behind us. Like Paul we too can say,

Philippians 3:13, "no, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,"

In order for us to truly experience the best that we can in Christ, we need to let go of the past. Yes we need to learn whatever we can from the mistakes and the lessons of the past, however we should never ever let the past keep us in bondage.

1John 1:9, "But if we confess our sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness."

If we look at this Scripture, we so often recognise that God has forgiven us for the sin we have committed; yet we never seem to be able to press forward into the promises of God. That’s because we overlook the promise in the second half of the verse, which is this fact; God cleanses us from all unrighteousness.

If He has cleansed me, that means I have a clean slate and am able to start again. So, the real key to unlocking the blessing of God is to understand that not only have I been forgiven, but I have also been cleansed. The main reason I struggle to go on is due to the fact that I am unable to forgive myself.

We need to forgive others and we need to get forgiveness from others otherwise we hold ourselves in bondage. That’s the lesson of Mark 11:25 & 26, however if I do not forgive myself, then the same thing applies. I hold myself in bondage and am unable to move on with my life.

That does not mean that I can go out and live life on the wild side thinking that all’s okay, as after all, God will forgive me. No I need to heed the Word of God. I need to do all possible to strive to live a life that is pleasing to God and as sin free as possible. When I mess up, I have 1 John 1:9 to help me out, however that is not a license to sin around every corner.

John 15:16, "You didn't choose Me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using My name."

Look at this scripture. Isn’t it exciting? We did not choose Jesus, He chose us. That means that we are destined for success. Jesus chose us so that we could impact the world. As I read this Scripture I saw another promise contained here that really got me excited. Notice that it says that when we produce fruit God will give us whatever we ask for when we ask using the Name of Jesus.

So as you start out in this New Year, my encouragement to you is this; let go of the past and the failures of the past, forgive yourself and move on and develop the fruit of the Spirit in your lives. That will ensure that when you ask the Father, He will give you the desires of your heart.

God bless

Ps Dave