In her book, which she titled "Passages." Gail Sheehy describes the traumatic Bloody Sunday incident in Ireland. She relates that, as a reporter, she was trapped on a balcony during the shooting and thought she was going to die in the battle. This brush with death dramatically changed her life: her marriage broke up, her work suffered, and she developed a fear of flying. -- But as she struggled with these personal failures, she wrote her book "Passages", which deals with the crises of life.

Friend, I believe that it would be true to say, that we all experience emotional hurt, disappointment and failure at some time in our life! - Perhaps it's a divorce, or being made redundant from a job that we really enjoyed, or it might have been a bitter end to a close relationship. On the other hand, some of us might feel that life is going by too quickly, and that we are not accomplishing what we really wanted to do with our life. Sometimes this sense of failure can be overwhelming, and we might begin to feel a little like Humpty Dumpty---broken in pieces at the foot of life's wall. - HOWEVER THE BIG QUESTION IS: HOW DO WE OVERCOME BAD MEMORIES? - How can we go on living, when the events of the past cast such a long shadow in the present?

Friend, if the memories of YOUR failures and disappointments are imprisoning YOU and disturbingly becoming the plot of YOUR dreams by repeatedly running through your mind, then I sincerely hope that the thoughts I shall be sharing with you today, might help YOU to defeat those negative memories.

First of all, I encourage you to look back to a day, or an hour, when you overcame the past. - Because that's a point YOU CAN look back to and say, "I changed then! So no matter what I have done, my life will be different from now on." - That friends, is the decision the defeated political aspirant makes in his or her mind to stand for election again. - It is also the moment when the prospective father begins to look for a better job in order to support his family.

Well, the second thing I want to encourage you to do today, is for YOU to make the effort to work through the emotions of YOUR past failures. - You see, breaking the cycle of FAILURE in OUR life, involves admitting OUR mistakes and being truly sorry for them. This means honestly telling God about OUR FAILURE, not just once, but repeatedly. Doing this will free US permanently from inner turmoil and damaged feelings from the past. It's also helpful to bounce OUR feelings about the past off a good friend. And perhaps, we will need to do that on a number of occasions, in order to express OUR strong inner feelings.

Friend, it's important that YOU and I learn to do this, because the raw edges of OUR anger or depression, or grief or tension, will NOT heal until we begin to feel a sense of gratitude for our FAILURES, or until we can think about the event or situation without being upset. - You see, often it is OUR emotions that keep OUR past FAILURES painfully present in OUR memory. - So if YOU can let go of YOUR negative emotions, the memory of them can be pleasantly dimmed.

The third thing I'd like to encourage YOU to do today, is to fill YOUR mind with good, healthy thoughts. - Set YOUR mind on a different lifestyle. - Seek out a new group of friends. - Look for fresh topics of conversation. - Motivate yourself to buy some positive reading material and begin to look ahead!

My final word of encouragement for YOU today, is for YOU make the effort to open up YOUR Bible and read it every day. If you'll do this, it will have a dramatic effect on YOUR outlook on life. Interestingly, this marvellous Book was written by people who sometimes experienced drastic FAILURE in their own lives. But what they wrote provides US with THEIR fresh look on life and their INSPIRED guidelines for successful living. - You see, the Bible clearly indicates to us, that by giving time to prayer, to serving God and our neighbours, and meditating on its marvellous message, WE will be able to squeeze the bitter memories of the past into an obscure corner of OUR minds.

Friend, God's love will never give up on US; -- It's "a love that will never let us go", and we can have absolute confidence, that if we place OUR TRUST in Him, He will give OUR broken hearts new dreams.

However, if YOU are still experiencing difficulty with a nagging memory that seems to tear at YOUR soul and YOU really want to find deeper meaning for YOUR life, we invite you to contact us for a FREE Booklet titled Letting Go of Painful Memories. This insightful booklet will reveal to YOU how the Lord's healing power can permanently release YOU from inner turmoil and damaged feelings. To receive your copy of our booklet, write to Discovering A BETTER LIFE, P.O. Box 1540, Albany, WA 6331 Our phone number is: (08)98 418 418 or Email us at: abl-alb@omninet.net.au