Pressing Toward The Mark

Let Your Faith Not Your Past Define You

You shall not go out with haste,…for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. —Isaiah 52:12

Security from Yesterday. Our present enjoyment of God’s grace tends to be lessened by the memory of yesterday’s sins and blunders. But God is the God of our yesterdays, and He allows the memory of them to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual growth for our future. God reminds us of the past to protect us from a very shallow security in the present. Security for Tomorrow. “…the Lord will go before you….” This is a gracious revelation— that God will send His forces out where we have failed to do so. He will keep watch so that we will not be tripped up again by the same failures, as would undoubtedly happen if He were not our “rear guard.” And God’s hand reaches back to the past, settling all the claims against our conscience. Our yesterdays hold broken and irreversible things for us. It is true that we have lost opportunities that will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Let the past rest, but let it rest in the sweet embrace of Christ. - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest

None of us are free from heartaches, disappointments, or regrets. Some of them are our doing, some not. But, if you are born again, new in Christ, you do not have to let your past define you.

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

Oh that we could embrace that attitude. Well, actually we can, but not by willing it. It is a product of a deep and abiding relationship with Christ. I was speaking with our daughter-in-law one day about the nature of heartache. If you were to break a bone, it would be painful of course, but the pain would eventually subside. You can remember the event. You can remember that you broke that particular bone. It might even remind you when a storm is approaching. But one thing you cannot do is feel the sharp, stabbing pain that you felt when the bone was broken. You know it hurt, but you cannot conjure up the same feeling that you had in the past. Not so with a broken heart. It only takes a word or a thought to bring back the pain of the moment when your heart was broken.

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. - Psalm 34:17-28

What a promise. He delivers us out of all of our troubles. He gives us strength. He gives us comfort. He gives us hope. He gives us life. You have so much to look forward to in the days ahead. Don’t let the pain of the past define you. Instead let the Lord renew you.

But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. - Isaiah 40:31

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

Listening To God

Most of us show incredible disrespect to God because we don’t even hear Him. He might as well never have spoken to us. The goal of my spiritual life [should be to have such a] close identification with Jesus Christ that I will always hear God and know that God always hears me …. If I have not developed and nurtured this devotion of hearing, I can only hear God’s voice at certain times. At other times I become deaf to Him because my attention is to other things— things which I think I must do. This is not living the life of a child of God. Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest

Have you ever said something in a conversation only to have someone say “That is just what I said!” But you didn’t hear it. Or maybe the thought that you had was not yours at all but the words the other person had just spoken. Whatever the case, the person is normally just a little put out because that tells them, in no uncertain terms, you are not listening to what they say.

That is how it is with us and God. It is not that God is not speaking .. the problem is that we are not listening. Our attention is on the cares of this world .. we are so focused on the issues of life that we cannot hear what God is saying to us.

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! The LORD of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. - Psalms 46:10-11

Hearing God requires focus … looking intently on Him. God is not your enemy He is your advocate. As you live your life every day, the Lord is with you. He is your strength. He knows what is best for you. Our natural desire is to trust in our own judgment and not listen to His voice …

Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, "This is the way, walk in it," Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left. - Isaiah 30:21

God speaks through His Word, through nature, He is always speaking …. But we must listen ….

(James 1:25) “But whoso looks into the perfect law of liberty (the Bible), and continues therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. “

This will not necessarily make you problems go away … the men that were inspired to write the words in the Bible all struggled in life … the proof of God’s presence is not the absence of trouble …

(John 16:33) “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

But He has overcome the world … He is at your side … you can have peace in the midst of the storm you are in now. Put your hope in God … listen to Him .. and then walk in the way He shows you.

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

Do You Have The Faith To Believe, But Sometimes Still Doubt?

Up front – Some may think that devotions should be short. A few sentences. I write what the Lord lays on my heart. Sometimes, like today, it can be lengthy. No apologies, just know that is not likely to change.

Have doubts? Join the club friend. I was talking with a friend some time back. The matter was concerning what seemed to be the imminent death of a loved one. He said, “I sure hope that when I die, I find out this (our hope in heaven) is really true.” (Have you ever had that thought?) Actually, his statement set me back for a second. I had never thought of him as having any doubts about his faith, but there it was. The stress of the death or grave illness of someone you care about seems to have the effect of removing inhibitions from people. Those situations reveal things that they typically keep hidden, and you wonder “Where did that come from?” or “I had no idea they felt that way!” But to the point …

We are on a journey of faith – like in Pilgrim’s Progress. We are jars of clay, formed from dust. There is something called the Law of Thermodynamics, [please indulge me] actually there are 4 laws, like Newton’s 3 Laws of Motion, except different. “Energy cannot be created or destroyed. In other words, in a closed system, the total amount of energy that can be taken out of the system will be equal to the total amount of energy that was put into the system.” Come to think of it, that might be why people think that they can be reincarnated. If you leave this human form, you will “pop-up” in another form. Zero sum. Whatever is taken away is put back in. (Hang with me, I am almost finished with the physics lesson!!!) My point is that these “laws” are nothing more than man’s observation of God’s creation. The truth is that God can do what He wants to do, whenever He wants to do it. He operates on an eternal clock and we operate on seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years. But hey, we do the best we can.

Here is the problem. If we try to figure God out on our own, we are doomed to failure. God said ....

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. - Isaiah 55:8-9

We, with our mortal natural minds, cannot figure God out.

The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. - 1 Corinthians 2:14

You see, in order to not have doubts, you must see the world as God does, and you can only do that if you have the power of God’s Spirit in you.

We are given an account of a young boy being healed by Jesus. The boy was apparently beyond human help.

So He (Jesus) asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You (Jesus) can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” - Mark 9:21-25

All of us face impossible situations. Situations that challenge the promises of God and our faith. Hebrews 11:1 says that Faith is about things hoped for and not seen. If you want to strengthen your faith you can do two things. First, be reminded of when God showed up in impossible circumstances and , second, keep your heart and mind fixed on Jesus. If you don’t do that you will suffer spiritual atrophy and when that happens you will be plagued by doubt. (Proverbs 3:5-6) “Trust in the Lord in all your ways and not your own mental capacity.” In one of the Indiana Jones movies, Indy was confronted by a huge man with a huge sword. Then Indy remembered that he was carrying a gun, so he shot the man with the sword. Well, in a way, Indy is me and you. Faced with impossible circumstances, we must remember that we are “packing”. We have the Holy Spirit in us .. the Creator God is on our side .. and He is faithful to His promises. You can believe that! And then you don't have a "hope of heaven" but are certain that you have a home in Heaven - Jesus said so!

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

The Consequence Of Not Keeping My Flesh In Check

He will glorify Me… —John 16:14

The holiness movements of today have none of the rugged reality of the New Testament about them. There is nothing about them that needs the death of Jesus Christ. All that is required is a pious atmosphere, prayer, and devotion. This type of experience is not supernatural nor miraculous. It did not cost the sufferings of God, nor is it stained with “the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 12:11). It is not marked or sealed by the Holy Spirit as being genuine, and it has no visual sign that causes people to exclaim with awe and wonder, “That is the work of God Almighty!” The New Testament example of the Christian experience is that of a personal, passionate devotion to the Person of Jesus Christ. Today He [Jesus] is being portrayed as the figurehead of a religion— a mere example. He is that, but He is infinitely more. He is salvation itself; He is the gospel of God! Jesus said, “…when He, the Spirit of truth, has come,…He will glorify Me…” (John 16:13-14). The Spirit of God does in me internally all that Jesus Christ did for me externally. - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest

A person who is born again and committed to following Jesus has a devotion to Jesus and therefore to the Father, that is evidenced in how they live and how they treat others. But there is one aspect that is invisible to the people around them and only visible to God. That is the condition of their heart. A heart wholly devoted to the Father. It is possible to attend church, put on your happy face, listen to sermons, and sing worship songs and not be devoted to following Jesus.

These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules. - Matthew 15:8-9

[People] having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. - 2 Timothy 3:5-7

Many people are convinced that “doing” is the same as “being”. They practice the Christian religion, embrace the teachings but lack the devotion to the Cornerstone of the Church. They may go to the altar every Sunday morning and still be spiritually ignorant and far from God. They lack understanding and they lack commitment to their faith … that is , if they have a saving faith. The demons know who Jesus is, but they don’t serve Him. They have another master. For many Christians, their hearts that were once alive toward God have become hardened toward spiritual things in favor of those things that satisfy the flesh. They go through the motions .. say the right things .. but serve themselves and not the risen Lord. Sound harsh? The truth often does because truth brings conviction and conviction brings discomfort and causes us to make a decision. Will I respond to the Truth or will I ignore it and choose to continue on the vain journey I am pursuing.

What am I saying? Friends, we need to be on our guard or before we know it .. those people .. will become “we the people”. I must examine myself and my devotion every day. I have to keep my flesh in check. The only way that we can glorify the Father is by being spiritually “right” and devoted to His will in every aspect of our lives. You must be careful that you do not relegate your spirituality to Sunday morning. We are Christians 24x7 into eternity.

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

Hearing God's Voice

The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, Samuel! Samuel! Then Samuel said, Speak [Lord], for your servant is listening. - 1 Samuel 3:10

But most of us show incredible disrespect to God because we don’t even hear Him. He might as well never have spoken to us. The goal of my spiritual life is such close identification with Jesus Christ that I will always hear God and know that God always hears me …. If I have not developed and nurtured this devotion of hearing, I can only hear God’s voice at certain times. At other times I become deaf to Him because my attention is to other things— things which I think I must do. This is not living the life of a child of God.” Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! The LORD of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. - Psalms 46:10-11

Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, "This is the way, walk in it," Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the left. - Isaiah 30:21

God speaks through His Word, through nature, He is always speaking …. But we must listen ….

But whoso looks into the perfect law of liberty (the Bible), and continues therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. - James 1:25

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. - John 16:33

But He has overcome the world … He is at your side … you can have peace in the midst of the storm you are in now. Put your hope in God … listen to Him .. and then walk in the way He shows you.

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

Come to Jesus and Live

‘The first thing I must be willing to admit when I begin to examine what controls and dominates me is that I am the one responsible for having yielded myself to whatever it may be.

There is no power within the human soul itself that is capable of breaking the bondage of the nature created by yielding. For example, yield for one second to anything in the nature of lust, and although you may hate yourself for having yielded, you become enslaved to that thing. (Remember what lust is— “I must have it now,” whether it is the lust of the flesh or the lust of the mind.) No release or escape from it will ever come from any human power, but only through the power of redemption. You must yield yourself in utter humiliation to the only One who can break the dominating power in your life, namely, the Lord Jesus Christ.

When you yield to something, you will soon realize the tremendous control it has over you. Even though you say, “Oh, I can give up that habit whenever I like,” you will know you can’t. You will find that the habit absolutely dominates you because you willingly yielded to it. It is easy to sing, “He will break every fetter,” while at the same time living a life of obvious slavery to yourself. But yielding to Jesus will break every kind of slavery in any person’s life.’ Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest

The yoke of the master of lust or self-centeredness is a harsh one. There is no peace only the demand for more … there is no blessing only a moment of satisfaction before the need to be satisfied rises up again. There is no love, only the suggestion of affection which is really a tool to get what you want. But then there is Jesus …

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. - Matthew 11:28-30

Chris Rice – “Come to Jesus”

“Weak and wounded sinner, Lost and left to die, O, raise your head for Love is passing by, Come to Jesus and live

Now your burden's lifted, And carried far away, And precious blood has washed away the stain... so Sing to Jesus and live,

And like a newborn baby, Don't be afraid to crawl, And remember when you walk sometimes we fall... so Fall on Jesus and live,

Sometimes the way is lonely, And steep and filled with pain, So if your sky is dark and pours the rain... then Cry to Jesus and live,

O, and when the love spills over, And music fills the night, And when you can't contain you joy inside... then Dance for Jesus and live,

And with your final heartbeat, Kiss the world goodbye, Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side... and Fly to Jesus and live,”

So, what are you waiting for? An invitation … you’ve got it!

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

As Your Run The Race - God Will Be Your Second Wind

However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. - Acts 20:24

Have you “renounced the hidden things of shame” in your life— the things that your sense of honor or pride will not allow to come into the light? You can easily hide them. Is there a thought in your heart about anyone that you would not like to be brought into the light? Then renounce it as soon as it comes to mind— renounce everything in its entirety until there is no hidden dishonesty or craftiness about you at all. Envy, jealousy, and strife don’t necessarily arise from your old nature of sin, but from the flesh which was used for these kinds of things in the past (see Romans 6:19 and 1 Peter 4:1-3). You must maintain continual watchfulness so that nothing arises in your life that would cause you shame. Never dull your sense of being your utmost for His highest. Many people have turned back because they are afraid to look at things from God’s perspective. The greatest spiritual crisis comes when a person has to move a little farther on in his faith than the beliefs he has already accepted. - Oswald Chambers, My Utmost For His Highest

When I was in the Army, we would do a lot of physical exercise as a unit. I can remember with one particular unit in the Aviation Squadron of 3rd Armored Cavalry in El Paso, Texas, I had a squadron commander that trained us for war. Not just physically, but mentally. We had a saying “you fight the way you train”. Well, in one case he used our physical training to help us with mental toughness. We were used to running a particular route. Early in the morning – 5:30 early – we call it O-dark thirty. We knew the land marks for our 3 to 4 mile run. We knew when we were half way and we knew when we were at the finish. By then, we were ready to hear “Quick time – march”, which means – stop running and walk in civilian vernacular. Well, one day we got to the “finish line”, but we kept running. That is when the mental panic sets in! We were already exhausted by the time we got to that point, but he kept running. Being exhausted and pushing yourself in spite of the pain in your lungs and legs - falling out was not an option. But you ready to start walking, and thrilled you were at the finish line – but the squadron commander kept us running right past the point where we could not go on! We ran for another half mile or so. What was the lesson? We can do more than we think we can. War is very demanding on the body and the mind. You must be able to go beyond yourself. And you know what? God will call you to go beyond yourself ... but ... He will be your second wind.

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. - 2 Timothy 4:7

Paul said that in the face of great personal trials. He had gone beyond himself many times, running on faith – Spirit power, and not his own determination and wisdom.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. - 1 Corinthians 9:24-25

Not falling out of the run in formation requires discipline and faith. In our runs in the Army, there were always people who would fall out, who could not go on, who lost heart and confidence. They fell by the wayside. The same way with our faith. I am not talking about loss of salvation. The people I mentioned were still in the Army, they needed more physical training so they could serve in the manner that was expected of them. And so it is with us as Christians. There are many who don’t have the faith to keep up with where God wants to take them. They need more training .. more confidence .. more encouragement ... more trust.

I remember taking a PT test in the Armor Officer Basic Course. That test is something you must pass. Well, a friend of mine stopped running during the two mile run. He had a look of pain and exhaustion on his face. I stopped too so I could encourage him to finish. The evaluators called out to me and told me to keep going and leave him behind. I could not and would not. He finished .. passed, barely. But he passed. So did I, but helping him cost me something.

No greater love has one man than this, to lay down his life for his friends - John 15:13

I am not bragging, I am making a point. As Christians, we are supposed to encourage one another to love and good works.

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. - Hebrews 10:24-25

Some of us need more encouragement than others ... but we all need it from time to time. Who do you know that needs to be encouraged in their faith .. to continue to run and not fall out .. even when they think they can’t go on? But know this .... helping others will cost you something. Be willing to pay the price and bring glory to God.

Think about it – Pray about it - Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone