Forgetting What is Behind

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, 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, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 3:12-14.

I guess I should start out by saying that I recognize it's been quite some time since I wrote on here last. I kind of forgot about this thing for a long time and just haven't gotten around to writing anything lately. To be perfectly honest, I don't expect myself to keep it up this time around either, but I'm bored tonight and had a few thoughts I wanted to write down somewhere, so here it goes...

I've been leading a Small Group Bible Study for the better part of the school year for the High School students in our worship band at Thomas Road. Every single one of these students have both incredible musical talent and an amazing heart for God. This small group time has been challenging to me, as well as the students, as we seek to grow closer to God and consequently grow together as a band.

Lately, we've been going through the book of Philippians together. Last week, we studied Philippians 3 -- an awesome, awesome chapter in this challenging and humbling letter of the Apostle Paul's. While there is plenty to talk about in this chapter, one of the things that really stood out to me was the popularly quoted verses 13-14. In our discussion time, we were going over what Paul meant when he instructed his readers to "forget what is behind." Of course, are first inclination is to think of all the bad stuff -- the sin, the mistakes, the failures, etc... And let me say that I do believe we should forget about those things and strive to move on. But I believe there is another aspect to this statement that Paul is making. Not only are we to forget the bad stuff, but perhaps, we also need to move past the good times, and strive for what is ahead of us.

Think about it. How many times do you find yourself looking back at your "mountain-top experiences" in an effort to make yourself feel better about where you currently find yourself? Or do you ever catch yourself looking back at yesterday to remember a time when you were really close to God -- when you were really seeking him, really loving him, really serving him? I know I find myself doing this a lot more than I would like to admit.

I'm not proposing that we totally forget the great things that God has done in our lives. Nor am I suggesting that we should cease to reflect on the victories and successes that God has given us. In fact, I think this practice of remembrance is commanded in other parts of Scripture. What I am proposing, however, is that sometimes we miss out on what God wants to do in our lives now because we are so focused on what happened yesterday -- both the good and the bad. What if God has something amazing for us tomorrow, but we miss it because we are content to simply reminisce about the high points of yesterday?

What is God wanting to do in your life, right now? What are the ways that you can "strain for what's ahead"? Have you been holding on to yesterday's successes to the extent that you are missing what God has in store for you?

Thanks for reading...