Summary: <br> In the 1500’s Captain Cortes led a fleet of ships to a new world for discovery. Upon arrival, he commanded his men to burn the ships. Yes, destroy that which brought you here and the only thing which could take you back to where you came from. BURN THE SHIPS, and once you do, there’s no turning back.<br> It was the ultimate act of commitment. We are here and we’re here to stay.<br> How many of us know the comfort and familiarity of our old lives can sometimes lure us back? No matter how good we’re doing now, if the way back is available, sometimes we’ll crawl back on that old ship and return to familiar home shores, even if they were miserable. We need a Captain Cortes up in here who says “NO GIRL, WE’RE BURNING THE SHIPS! YOU’RE NOT GOING BACK!”<br> Well, guess what girls, we’re in luck, we have someone better than Captain Cortes, we have Captain Jesus. He will not only burn the ships, he will walk on the water. At his command the winds and the waves obey him. If he says we’re not going back, then girl, we’re not going back.<br> The truth is, there are things we would change in our lives, but we’re not willing to even start this time because we fear we would just turn back. We lack the confidence in our willpower to follow through. We are afraid of a little progress, then a lot of backslide. One step forward, then two steps back, and the dizzing dance has us not even willing to try again.<br> We’ve taken that bold stance before, declaring this is it, we’re changing and we’re never going back to the old ways … then what happened? Shamefully we did return. We slipped right back into old habits and patterns and maybe today we find ourselves no better off than we ever were. The effort feels exhausting, and useless. We’re just like Paul in Romans 7:15 when he says ” I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.”<br> What’s the answer? What’s the answer when we keep going back and doing the things we know we shouldn’t do? What’s the answer when we can’t seem to break the habit or change our ways?<br> BURN THE SHIPS AND PRESS ON<br> Paul also writes in Philippians 3: 13-14, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me…”<br> God has a big beautiful life available to you, but the ship you arrived on will only take you back to where you came from. Forget what is behind you sister. Burn that ship. Don’t let it take you back. Step into a new day on this new shore and explore what God has for you here. Press on sister. No turning back.<br> If you follow the BIG Life Mornings playlist on Spotify, you’ll quickly find a large number of my favorite songs are by For King and Country. One of their best is called “Burn the Ships” … and yes, that song played this morning.<br> We’ve got to<br> Burn the ships, cut the ties<br> Send a flare into the night<br> Say a prayer, turn the tide<br> Dry your tears and wave goodbye<br> Step into a new day<br> We can rise up from the dust and walk away<br> We can dance upon our heartache, yeah<br> So light a match, leave the past, burn the ships<br> And don’t you look back<br> Now, let’s put action to this. It can’t just be a warm fuzzy feeling imagining God giving us this new beginning. It must be more. Warm fuzzies don’t last. Struggles and temptations soon return, and that’s just the truth of it. Whew, I’m gonna be healthy and lose this extra 60 pounds, just watch me I’m doing it this time for reals ya’ll! I’m inspired with my warm fuzzies and I know God is going to strengthen me! 2 hours later, oh dang those brownies smell good, just one bit won’t hurt.
