"Forgetting and Reaching"

Last Monday I read the daily Open Windows devotional and told my husband these verses are for me.

"...but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward teh goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." 
Phillipians 3:13-14  NKJV

From Open Windows, first written over 30 years ago:
          A wise man once said, "There are times when, if you cannot forget, you cannot reach, because remembering ties you to the past."
          Some memories bless; others burn.  Yet both must be so placed by the Christian builder that they may become stepping-stones rather than stumbling blocks.  The memories that bless are those that we hold in our hearts because of their high, and sometimes hold, significance.  Recalling them brings a soft, warm glow.  They are a part of our present life, and we are grateful.
          But memories that burn have their advantage, also.  From them we learned, and a part of that learning was to forgive and to grow in the process.  We must cherish the good times but not cling to them.  On theother hand, we must not dwell on the bad times and not let them cling to us.
         The past is a memory; do not lean on it.  Today is here; use it.  Tomorow is beckoning; reach for it.

I had never read these verses before and it felt like they were screaming at me - quit dwelling on your mistakes and what you've done wrong; move forward and reach for what God has for you.  They truly comforted me.  Then yesterday on K-Love, they read those same 2 verses. 

God, I hear you and thank you for caring enough to polish me and show me how I hinder myself.