[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Keep pressing towards the mark

By Oke Chinye

Read: Philippians 3: 12-16

Meditation verse:

“Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me” (Phil 3:12).

The Apostle Paul said he forgets what is behind and presses forward to obtain what is ahead. If anyone had things to regret it was Paul. He had persecuted the Christians with an unmatched zeal, he held the coats of those who stoned Stephen to death. He had a thorn in his flesh which was so uncomfortable that he begged God to remove it three times. But, as he reviewed his life to the Philippians, he was not speaking from a place of regret, but from a place of gratitude. Gratitude to God, who had brought him this far despite his past, gratitude also in the knowledge that the One who had begun this good work in his life will be faithful to complete it.

In the wake of turning 50, I found myself in a place of constant restlessness and anxiety. I would review my life unconsciously and feel thoroughly dissatisfied in certain areas. I was barely sleeping and even when I managed to sleep, I would wake up suddenly, with my heart pounding. As I turned to God for help, He began to teach me from His word. One morning today’s meditation verse hit me like a brick wall. The restlessness was in a way urging me to press towards the mark.

We all have a mark to press towards in our walk with God. There is so much ahead of you. There are territories to conquer. Irrespective of what life has handed to you, press towards the mark and do so from a place of gratitude, not from a place of striving, fear, anxiety, or regret. Today, press forward to take hold of all that Christ took hold of you for. Being confident that “The Lord will perfect that which concerns you” (Ps 138:8).

IN HIS PRESENCE is written by Dcns Oke Chinye, Founder of The Rock Teaching Ministry (TRTM).

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