Reaching Forward

Making a more courageous connection between today and tomorrow is neither impossible nor impractical. Rather than stumble aimlessly toward the future in defeat, we can concentrate our minds on what God has made possible for us in His Son. With our minds firmly fixed on God, we can reach forward with purpose and passion. Hope, courage, and self-discipline can be the qualities that define us as we live today. The apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 3:13-14, “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, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

One of the first things that the apostle mentioned was “forgetting those things which are behind.” There is a sense in which we need to “forget” the past. This does not mean to erase our memories; it simply means that we let go of what has already happened and move on past them. Many good things we may remember with gladness and many bad things we may remember with wisdom. But — those memories must not confine us or keep us from our work.

We must then be of a mind set on “reaching forward to those things which are ahead.” The things which are “ahead” of course are spiritual things. Things that have to do with God and with eternity. If these are to be ours, we must “reach forward.” Exerting ourselves with regard to eternity must be our decision and our commitment. We will not move forward (significantly) if we do not reach forward!

God was much more than merely one of the apostle Paul’s “interests.” He wrote: “this one thing I do .... I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  This is the single-minded determination that separates the real seeker from the casual browser. This is the hunger and thirst that is needed to find God. Since the beginning, everything that God has made known of Himself, He has made one thing perfectly clear: He IS worth reaching for! He is the very best thing about tomorrow! I encourage you to press on and live for Christ now before it is everlastingly too late.