Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. Only let us hold true to what we have attained.  (Philippians 3:12-16 ESV)

The Apostle Paul wanted the believers of this church to know that he was not perfect. He was still growing in his knowledge of Jesus and his relationship with the Lord. I imagine that there were still things that God called Paul to do, that Paul wasn’t comfortable with at first. He still had to get out of his “comfort zone” to grow. Sometimes we can think that one day it will all be easy. We’ll be older maybe wiser and we’ll just know what to do or we’ll be so used to doing the right thing that it has become easy for us. Paul reminds us that isn’t the case. In fact real maturity is the ability to press on to what God has next without stopping to stare at our belly button along the way. He says it with three distinct lines.

“Forgetting what Lies behind.” Don’t get caught up in the past he says. Some folks are content to hang out and remember what happened last year or ten years ago or whenever the last significant event in their life was. Paul reminds us, don’t sit back and dream of the good ole days. If you’re alive you not only have a past but you have a future. You can’t change where you come from or where you’ve been, but you can change where you are going.
“Straining forward to what lies ahead.” He reminds us to press on that God has great things in store for us. He didn’t just act in the past and forget about us. He’s still got great plans for us. No matter what our circumstance, no matter what our situation there is a way forward, when we trust in Jesus. We were not created to just talk about the things that have happened in the past. He’s also called us to be involved in good works of the future.

“I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” There is a way to lose at life and think you’re winning. Imagine playing a video game where you get to battle trolls to fill your backpack with all kinds of useful items for a long journey. Ultimately the point of the game is to rescue a princess and that’s why you need the items, but what if you just went around battling trolls collecting items and you never took the journey to rescue the princess? You’d fail to meet the requirements to win the game! The Apostle Paul reminds us that life isn’t about stacking up possessions (who has the coolest MP3 player, video game system, etc.), social status, or takes the most trips to Disney Land… Ultimately life is about bringing glory to God.

Today as you pray, pray through this formula. You might say something like: “God help me not to be held back by my past, but help me to be excited for what you have in store for me. I don’t want anything to compete with my desire to worship you and tell others about you.”