Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
Philippians 3:12 NIV
I Press On
Back last November, the auto union Unifor expressed hope that Ottawa would put a full-court press on auto maker Stellantis in light of announcements they were planning to move some production out of Canada. Unifor’s national president asked the federal government to continue to hold Stellantis to what it calls previous commitments to Canada and its autoworkers. Lana Payne was responding to Industry Minister Mélanie Joly’s recent pledge to a parliamentary committee to try to recoup some of the tax incentives provided to the carmaker.
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When God stopped Saul on the road to Damascus and turned his life around, He called him to the specific task of being the apostle to the Gentile. Because Paul knew exactly what he was called to be and do, he committed his life to focusing on the call and the goal. In Philippians 3:12, he writes about this: “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” Paul reminds us here that the Christian journey is not about perfection, but pursuit. We haven’t “arrived,” and that’s okay. What matters is that we keep pressing forward – towards God’s purpose, towards the goal of being consistently faithful to the calling He’s placed on our lives. Jesus took hold of us, calling us with a purpose, and so we respond by striving to live out that purpose – not out of obligation, but out of gratitude. Paul here encourages us: don’t stop. Keep moving. Keep growing. Keep reaching for the life Jesus envisioned when He called you by name.
These have been words from the heart.
Bob Beasley