forward.

12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, 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, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Phil 3

It is hard to forget the things that have been done to me. And even when the daily routine of life distracts me momentarily, there is always a tugging pain upon my heart, a distant, but distinct memory of tragedy and destruction. Here, Paul tells us he looks ahead, forgetting everything behind, in order to become perfected.

I will myself to forget. I busy myself. I try to dream and hope for better days. However, Paul doesn't merely forget. He doesn't simply look ahead. He presses toward a goal, meaning his eyes are fixed on the prize of Jesus Christ.

This devotion was important to me because in the depths of my despair, God blessed me with this very verse nearly two years ago. Yesterday night, I went through some definite doubts about whether or not I made the right decision. And lo and behold, this morning He used this verse to remind me that this life is not about the immediate, the present. It is about heaven; it is about Jesus. And, I need to be confident that God will perform His work in me as long as I fix my eyes on Him.