God Forgave Bob... So Bob Forgave Bob, Too

“We cannot change the past; however, we can shape the future. I would need to see a therapist every day of the week and twice on Sunday if I dwelled on my sordid past. We just need to let it go because we cannot change it one whit. Think of how poor Paul who had martyred Christians must have felt. I’m sure God convinced him to look to the future and what a future he had writing more of the New Testament than anyone. Great things can be accomplished if we are willing to forgive ourselves our sins and walk with God.” – Bob Williamson

If you visit any bookstore in America, I am confident that you will find a “Self-Help” section. In some stores, it is even bigger than the Sports, Travel & Leisure, Religion, and Cooking sections put together.

Many of the books in the Self-Help section deal with self-love, self-actualization, and self-motivation. However, I have yet to find (not that I’ve looked that hard) a book dedicated to self-forgiveness.

As Bob Williamson wrote in today’s quote, he had a lot of self-forgiving to do. He was a juvenile delinquent (to put it mildly), a drug addict, a criminal, and even a warlock. Even the U.S. Army wanted nothing to do with Bob, kicking him out after diagnosing him as a sociopath.

Although everyone – including Bob himself – had given up on him, God hadn’t. Bob was radically saved and went on to found 15 different companies and a few ministries during his long and stellar business career. Ironically, his largest client was the U.S. Army, which agreed to use his inventory software for their food service.

Bob is now retired, having sold his latest company for $75 million, and living on a farm in Mississippi. His wife Theresa has stood by him through thick and thin, and they have a lovely family. Despite a variety of physical ailments including skin cancer, back and neck issues, arthritis, and night blindness caused by macular degeneration, Bob continues to live life and serve the Lord. In fact, he writes a daily devotional message similar to mine every weekday… and has been doing so for more than 20 years.

My friend, do yourself a favor and forgive yourself for your past failures. As Bob pointed out, there’s nothing you can do about the past, so why not just let it go? Say you’re sorry to God – and others you may have hurt – and press on.

“Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-14 (BSB)

- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President