Reach For The Things Before You

Faith Filled Thoughts
April 8th, 2009
By Connie Ciccone
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Reach For The Things Before You


Scripture: Philippians 3:13 "Forget the past ... reach to the future ... press toward the mark."

Jean-Pierre de Caussade in 'The Joy of the Saints' said, "To escape the distress caused by regret for the past or fear about the future, this is the rule to follow:

Leave the past to the infinite mercy of God,
The future to His good providence;
“Give the present wholly to His love by being faithful to His grace."

The Apostle Paul basically said the same thing. He said, "I am going to forget the things that are behind and reach for the things which are before me." As he forgot the past and looked with anticipation to the future, he made every moment of his life count by pressing towards the goal that was set before him. He spent no idle moments and left no stone unturned. When he was in prison, he didn't sit around and wait until he was released to do something for God. He diligently spent his time writing letters to instruct and encourage the saints in the ways of the Lord. Even when he was stoned and left for dead, Paul did not shrink back because of this horrific past event, but fearlessly got back into the arena and fought the good fight of faith.

These are such wise words, for even though we are living in the present, there is not a day that goes by that we do not reflect on the past or wonder about the future. As far as the past is concerned, we all have things that we regret, but there is no way to unscramble eggs or to change our histories. What is done is done and, like the Apostle Paul, we must forget the past and move on with our life. We cannot drag our past into the promise of our future, but must leave our regrets to the infinite mercy of God.

He tells us not to worry about our transgressions because He is not adding them up or holding them against us. In His heart, they are as far as the East is from the West. When we seek His forgiveness, He instantly erases our sins from His thoughts and never judges us harshly even though He, Himself, has never sinned. As God forgives us, we must forgive ourselves. It is interesting that those about us who have failed are the ones who continually hold us accountable for our past. Their memory seems to be short concerning their own failures, but very keen in remembering the past mistakes of others.

Our future is in God's hands and as God holds it before us, we must reach for it, believing that He has good plans or a good providence for us. There is nothing to fear, regardless of what we may face, for God is with us and He is in control. His will for our lives is sovereign and we must be faithful to submit to His plan with our whole heart. As we give the present season to Him and press forward towards the mark of His high calling on our lives, the door to our future will open before us and the fear of the unknown and the distress of the past will fade into obscurity.

May He Bless You and Keep You Today!

With Great Love
IN HIS SERVICE
Connie
Please click below to see something Jesus left for your Spirit!:

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