Press On!

…I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Phil. 3:13-14

Every race must have a finish line. We have to know where we are going before we can finish. This verse tells us that the finish line is not here on this earth. Our race here has eternal significance, but the prize comes after we leave this race. We are reminded that in order to run our race well, we must let go of the past, the things that hold us back, and press onward toward all God has created us to be.

No runner enters a race weighted down with unnecessary junk. You wouldn’t start running while carrying your high school yearbook, your divorce decree, or your financial records. You also wouldn’t drag your legal file, the stuff you hoard, or your self-compiled list of personal failures. You don’t need them and they’ll slow you down. They slow you down in your life race, too. God wants us to keep our eyes on His prize and shed whatever keeps us from it. When we let go of the junk, we are free to focus on following wherever He leads us.

Are you letting God heal your past? Are you accepting the full pardon and cleansing He offers you through His Son Jesus? He invites you to forget the past and look forward. He wants you to press on with your eye on the prize. The greatest reward we can receive is to look in the face of our Savior one day and hear Him say, “Well done!”

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