-July 28, 2020-
Good morning, happy Tuesday,
-Keep Pressing On Toward The Goal-
“I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
(Philippians 3:14).
The Apostle Paul is an example of great perseverance; he never gave up, but kept on going in spite of difficulties, opposition, persecution, hardships, or anything or anyone else. We need this same resolve today. We are experiencing things today that we have never seen before. With this Coronavirus pandemic life has changed so dramatically.
We don’t know how long it will last, but we know that God knows. He will take us through this just as He has other things in the past. We just need to keep pressing on one day at a time. He will strengthen us and help us to keep going.
Paul gives us the key in Philippians 3:12-14. He writes, “forgetting the things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.” There are two days over which we have no control: yesterday and tomorrow. Yesterday is past and we can’t change it; tomorrow is ahead of us and we don’t know what is coming. Spending our time fretting over the past, won’t change anything, neither will worrying about what may happen in the future. We just have today to press on.
So what can we do? What should we do? The simple answer is to press on today toward the goal of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. The common denominator of all great achievements in this world is to keep going until the goal is achieved. Greatness is rarely achieved on the first try. Often it takes years and tears to see God’s work perfected. The fact that He chooses to use us in His service is beyond my understanding. Angels could do the job better, faster, and with no complaints. But God’s strength is perfected in our weakness and He gets all the glory.
The hymn writer said, “When the valley is deep, when the mountain is steep, when the body is weary, when we stumble and fall. When the choices are hard, when we’re battered and scarred, when we’ve spent our resources, when we’ve given our all. In Jesus’ name, we press on. In Jesus’ name, we press on. Dear Lord, with the prize, clear before our eyes, we find the strength to press on.”
There is so much strength, hope, and confidence in the name of Jesus. We just need to keep on keeping on. We must keep pressing on in the service of our King until He calms us home to be with Him in heaven. That is what Paul did, that is what so many saints before us have done. Let us press on today, not quitting or giving up. The prize is clear before our eyes.
Have a blessed day pressing on with Jesus for the upward call of God. Stay safe and healthy.
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 