Pressing on

Do you ever feel like something is holding you back from you being the person you want to be? Are you trying to push through something and feel like you are getting nowhere? Are you not reaching your goals and getting discouraged along the way? I know I often feel like this. Life is hard. Situations are rough. Sometimes its hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  But I believe in a God who loves me right where I am. I believe in a God who is always with me. I believe in a God who has a plan bigger than me. I believe in a God who can transform me to become more like Him. I believe in a God that has Purpose, Power, and Perseverance. The one thing I have to do, LET HIM DO HIS WORK IN MY LIFE. Check this verse out…

Philippians 3:12-14 “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, 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 for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

So let’s break it down. Living with Christ is a journey. We have aspirations. We have desires. We are going somewhere. And we have to look to the Lord for what he desires for us. Christ has a plan. He has a purpose for us. We have to choose to live our life with him. But we have not arrived. We have not reached our goals. And frankly, we never will fully arrive. Philippians 1:6 says “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” So we are a work in progress. We have to let what is behind us refine us rather than define us, and keep moving forward. We go through things to realize the amazing power and beauty of Christ. It is not my power or what I have done, it is what Christ does in and through me. In our weakness, He is strong. In our struggle, He is the Provider. (It may not always look exactly how we would want, but Christ has bigger and sometimes different plans) In our desperation, He is our rock. In our fears, He is the path. So our goal? PRESS ON. KEEP GOING. KEEP TRUSTING. Sometimes the worst thing we can do is try harder. God wants us to let go, and LET HIM LEAD. Christ has chosen you. He has called you to look heavenward. He has appointed you to store up treasures on earth. You have a place in His Kingdom. Now is the time to live out the Kingdom here on earth. Which is played out one moment at a time in inviting the Lord to be with you every step of the way. As you mature in your faith, you will get to know the Lord’s character more and more. And you will see and understand things differently.  This doesn’t mean things will be easier.  They will be deeper, richer, and more powerful. We believe in a God that wants what is best for us in HIS kingdom. Not our world. Our confidence for who we are is not based on our past, present, or even future. It is based on the love of our Father, the purpose of our Creator, the trust of our Savior, the grace of our Redeemer, the truth of our Teacher, and the freedom of our God. Do you trust in him? Can you put today’s confidence in him? You can. It is one step at a time.

Think or Pray about one thing in your life that has challenged you. Then think about how you have in the past or can in the future let that teach you, mold you, and change you. Pray to press on towards God’s goal rather than your own.