Brothers and sisters, 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 3:13-14
This past June I delivered a series of messages based upon Richard
Foster’s book, Celebration of Discipline. The intent of the series was to
encourage and possibly guide all of us into developing a lifestyle of constant communication with Our Heavenly Father through Meditation,
Prayer, Fasting, Silence, Solitude and Simplicity among other “disciplines”.
As I prepared for this series I found that my
own personal devotional time was severely lacking in practically all areas. If I was going to teach “Spiritual Discipline” wouldn't it be necessary
for me to actually learn myself?
One of the commitments I made was to memorize the Sermon on
the Mount because 1) this is how Jesus formally introduced Himself to the world
and 2) it was the basis for His entire ministry.
Since I have just begun my ministry with River Run Christian
Church – Brevard, I could see no greater way to learn how to minister than
sitting at the feet of my Savior, as His disciples sat at His feet when He
began teaching The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1,2)
I have completed my memorization of Matthew Chapter 5 and my
mind of late has been totally consumed by the very last verse of Chapter
5. All of Matthew 5 is underscored by
this one verse:
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:48
Reciting the first part of The Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5)
repeatedly has deeply transformed my thought process. When evaluating who I am,
what I do, where I go, I am reminded continuously how far I have to go to
mirror what Jesus was teaching His disciples.
And then, oh my Lord, then I read Matthew 5:48 and realize that not only
do I miss the mark of how I should live my life significantly; I miss the
ultimate goal completely.
Reading what the Apostle Paul wrote, which I began this blog, I have a clearer understanding of what he is saying. I am nowhere close
to where I need to be in regard to my relationship with my Creator or His
creation, but I cannot let what I did yesterday, last week, last month, the
years gone by to determine what I do today. I need to have one goal…one
objective…one purpose and that is to press on toward the goal to win the prize
for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
I pray that my eyes, today, can be focused with laser
intensity on where I need to go.
