I Cannot Go Back

Verse 1

I wish I could go back and change what I knew,

Say something different, make something new.

There are moments my mind likes to replay,

As though thinking enough could rewrite yesterday.

But Lord, time won’t turn no matter how long

I keep asking the past where I went wrong.

So instead of returning where I cannot remain,

Create something new from what taught me the pain.

Chorus

I cannot go back,

But God, I can begin.

I cannot rewrite

Every place I have been.

Take what I’ve learned, Lord,

And make my heart new.

I cannot go backward,

So I’ll walk on with You.

Verse 2

Regret can be useful when truth helps me grow,

But shame builds a prison that won’t let me go.

So teach me the difference between learning and chains,

Between honest reflection and living in pain.

I’ll own what was mine without making it all

The permanent name by which I must be called.

Lord, let the lesson remain, not the shame,

And let mercy give tomorrow another name.

Chorus

I cannot go back,

But God, I can begin.

I cannot rewrite

Every place I have been.

Take what I’ve learned, Lord,

And make my heart new.

I cannot go backward,

So I’ll walk on with You.

Bridge

Yesterday taught me,

But yesterday is gone.

God, give me wisdom

To keep moving on.

Restore what is honest,

Release what is shame.

Lord, give tomorrow

A new kind of name.

Final Chorus

I cannot go back,

But God, I can begin.

I cannot rewrite

Every place I have been.

Take what I’ve learned, Lord,

And make my heart new.

I cannot go backward,

So I’ll walk on with You.

Last Verse

And when memory tries pulling me into before,

I’ll remember Your mercy still opens a door.

The past can instruct me but cannot decide

Who I become, Lord,

With You by my side.