Press On

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended;

but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are

behind

and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.

    Philippians 3:13

The world will tell you that the dominating influence in

your life is your past. If you came from a difficult home,

that will determine the direction of your life. If your culture

was treated unfairly, that will dictate the condition of your

life today. If you were hurt or abused or if your youth was

spent in rebellion, the remainder of your life will be spent

struggling with your past.

Christians, on the other hand, live in freedom because

Christ has overcome our past. The “old things” have been

done away with and “new things” have come (2 Cor.

5:17). God has so totally forgiven the Christian's sin that

He chooses not to remember it (Isa. 43:25). Christians do

not forget the past, but we are not controlled or motivated

by it. The Christian looks to the future with hope.

The people of the world focus on what they are

overcoming. Christians focus on what they are becoming.

Christians know that the Holy Spirit is conforming them

into the image of Christ. Christians know that eventually

every injustice will be addressed and every hurt

comforted. They know that Satan, and death itself, will

finally be brought to an end. The Christian's future is so

full and rich and exciting that it supersedes whatever

happened in the past.

If you are preoccupied with your past, ask God to open

your eyes to the incredible future that awaits you and

begin, like Paul, to press on to what is ahead.

Devotional by Richard Blackaby:

Experiencing God day by day.