Today Is A New Day...There Is Always More!

This  morning I am reading from Paul's letter to the Philippians, and it appears to be a direct continuation from yesterday's theme.  Here are the verses -

Philippians 3:12-14 NIV:

[12] "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. [13] 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, [14] I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

Stepping back a bit into the historical context of Paul's writing, His letter to the Philippians is generally believed to have been written after his letters to the Romans, Corinthians, Ephesians and Thessalonians. In other words, later in his ministry, sometime later in his third missionary journey.  It is in this context that we should read his comments, for if anyone could say they have fulfilled their calling and purpose it would have been Paul at this point.  He had founded numerous churches, had defended the faith by writing the letters that most would consider his greatest works, and had personally evangelized much of the Roman world.

Instead, we see Paul pressing forward, straining with effort to press into the purposes and calling that he had in Christ Jesus.  Paul understood that there was always more, always new levels and he did not rest on his previous achievements, nor disqualify himself because of his past mistakes.  He forgot what was behind him and pressed forward into Christ, into his purpose, pressing towards the goal.  We are all called to new levels in Christ, new opportunities exist every day, and with each day we should start anew in our pursuit of the Lord and the fulfillment of His purposes and callings in our life.

It is not that Jesus forgets what we have done, or accomplished. Rather, it is from a place of humility and loving relationship that we press forward.  I have not stopped loving my wife effectively and in action, because I have successfully done so for 29 years, and have achieved that goal.  I continue to renew my love for her daily, choosing each day to love her more than the day before.  Similarly, our faith is about relationship, and relationships should always be growing, always becoming richer if there is positive daily interaction.  The goal is oneness with Christ in Heaven, and anything short of that leaves room for growth and improvement.

We should not get down on ourselves if we have let years slide by with limited activity, or relational growth.  Rather we should forget what is in the past and press forward into a new day of new opportunity.  Think of it this way, you have an opportunity to reconnect with an old friend that you haven't seen in years, and rather than beating yourself up for the missed years, you embrace the opportunity to pick up where you left off and press forward, experiencing a richer and fuller relationship than you ever did before.  That is the invitation found in Christ, for His mercies are new every morning, and His desire is for relationship now, regardless of what you experienced in the past.

So, I am encouraged this morning to look at today as a new day, with new opportunities to press into relationship with Jesus.  He has invited me into relationship and it is a wonderful thing to discover the purposes and callings in my life, to see myself how He sees me.  We can forget everything in the past and press forward today!

Amen!