Philippians 3:12–16 (NKJV) — 12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. 16 Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind.
Look to the past too long and you end up wrecking. We can learn from the past, but we cannot go back and relive it. The coach yelled, “Quit looking behind you Hartman, there is no one there.” Focus on the past and you will never move forward. We must have a purpose and a goal in life. We are to press on and move toward the goal that has been set for us.
God has set a goal for us. He has a plan, a purpose for our lives. He has placed us to run the race that is set before us. We are not to run another person’s race. We are not in competition with another person. The only way we become a winning Christian in the eyes of God is to fulfill the purpose for which we have been saved. We must praise God for who we are and not wish or pretend to be someone else.
Two important things we should look to. One, we should give God the best we have. We are to lay hold of God’s calling in our lives. Again, we are not to focus on the past. We are to reach forward to those things which are ahead. Our purpose is not to please the world. Our life is to be pleasing to God.
Second, we live in community, the community of God. We are to work together to carry out His purpose for us. In the Christian faith, life is not a Lone Ranger experience. We work together in carrying out God’s plan and purpose in our lives.