Tag Archives: God

Pressing on, pt. 2

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Ever trap a monkey? It is a simple process. You set out a cage and put bananas in it. Then lock the cage. Once the monkey sees the banana, he will reach through the cage and take hold of the banana. At this point, a person could walk up and capture the monkey.

Why? Because the monkey is still holding on to the banana. He won’t let go of the prize!

Even when danger is near, the monkey still values the banana enough that he won’t let go.

He won’t let go, ever.

 

This is a multi-part post on Phil. 3:12-14. Click here for part 1. 

Today is about verse 12. I have been pondering it all week. 

“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.”

The first half is easy to understand. Paul has not achieved perfection. He still has room to grow. I get that. In fact, it is way too easy sometimes to realize that I have a long way to go to get to the goal. But the second half of the verse is more complicated.

“But I press on…” Paul keeps pressing on so I must do the same.

“to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” Now hold on!

What does that even mean!?!?

Remember the monkey? The banana was valued so much by the monkey that he would be willing to be captured or even killed because he wanted the banana so bad. 

He loved the banana.

God loves us so much that He was willing to do anything that have us. He even let His son go to the cross and die. All because He did not want to let go of us.

Back to Phil. 3. “which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”

When he took hold of me…

He took my sin away.

He forgave me.

He gave me purpose.

He now has plans for me.

His Holy Spirit now resides in me.

I became a new creation.

I can now share my life with Him.

Think about that for your life. 

How would you finish this sentence?

When Jesus took hold of my life, he…?

 

Pressing on, pt. 1

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Sports purist. That is the title I have given to myself. Because I live in Green Bay, most would assume that I am a Packers fan. But then I tell them I moved from Minnesota. Their face kinda squirms and they ask, “So does that mean you are a Vikings fan?!?!” 

Their tone implies I have done something horribly wrong. How could I cheer for another team. Then, I begin to explain that I am a sports purist.

It does not matter the sport, the team, the player, the gender, or the age. If I see a person going flat out to make the play or win the game, that makes me happy. This is the reason that I would rather just watch the Top 10 Plays of the Week on ESPN. They have the best plays of all the sports! Pete Rose, pictured here, shows what I am talking about.

Pete Rose and Roy Staiger

Pete Rose

Although his career was tainted because of his gambling issues, he still remains a great example of giving it all.

Paul writes in Philippians 3:13, “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,”

There was a sense of purpose. Paul said that he did not have it yet. He was reaching, striving, straining for it. He was going flat out. Fill tilt.

I love that about Paul. He is the kind of person that I would watch. I am sports purist and Paul would certainly, without a doubt, make any top 10 list.

Are you going all out? Full tilt, not looking back but reaching for the goal that God has put before you? God can and will give you the power to get there. Just keep pressing on!

Quitting?

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Ever want to quit?

Feel like throwing in the towel?

Too difficult to continue?

quit_red_2011

I answered yes to these three questions this week.

But there is something that just won’t let go.

And I thank God Almighty for never letting me go.

I was drawn to Philippians 3. Paul writes a few verses about perseverance. He says that he strives. He will press on. There is a goal and he wants to get it.

I had to read it about 4 or 5 times before it started to sink in.

Next week I will unfold it more but here is the nugget for today.

Life is bigger than you or me. There is always more to what we are experiencing at the moment. There is purpose and even destiny. God knows.

I leave you with a quote from Doc Brown. If you are not sure who that person is, just watch one of my favorite movies, Back to the Future. 

back2bto2bthe2bfuture2bquote

So until next week, press on!

More?

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God is working. But I don’t always see it. I feel like there is more. Not that I am unhappy or discontent. I am blessed beyond measure. Here is what I mean by blessed.

  • My wife is about to enter another decade on her birthday next week. She is all things amazing. God has given me a tremendous (understatement!) gift in my wife.
  • My son is incredible. Between the legos and video games he still has time to excel in school and volunteer at church. At eleven, he is awkward and awesome at the same time!
  • My daughter is fantastic! It is fun to snuggle in the morning. She still lets me snuggle at 8. Her smile brightens my day like no other. She also knows more Spanish than I do. Wow.
  • Our church is wonderful. A healthy church is so encouraging. And we get to help in various way! The people are incredible. We can grow at our church.
  • We live debt free mainly due to the choice we have made to tithe.
  • I can still play hard on the softball field even though I am one of the oldest persons out on the field!
  • We are surrounded by friends and family that love us.

But I feel like there is more to God. I want more of Him.

Psalm 42:1, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.”

Psalm 84:2, “My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.”

Psalm 73:26, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

The great thing is that God wants to be found by us. He will satisfy our longings. His character is one of generosity. 

So today, I am asking for more. What are you asking for?

A Winepress and a Warrior

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This post is a continuation of some Old Testament people. Click on Abraham or Joseph to read the other two Old Testament posts.

Gideon. As with most of these people, their stories are filled with crazy, supernatural stuff. Angels visiting, people testing God, battles begin fought. It all seems unreal to me. But yet it is real. And that is what strikes me. These people, especially Gideon, are normal people. And by normal, I mean normal-every-day-average-unremarkable people. 

Just like me.

But before we get to the angel visit, the testing, or the fighting, we find Gideon hiding. 

He was hiding from the enemy. Why? So they would not take his wheat. The enemy of Israel was oppressing Gideon and all of Israel. For seven years this was happening. The first 11 verses of Judges 6 give us the account. It was all the Israelites could do to stay alive. They hid in caves. Their crops and livestock were under constant attack. It was bad. 

But that is what happens when, “Again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord,”. God let the enemy invade and oppress.

Is the enemy of your soul invading and oppressing you? Are you doing evil in the eyes of the Lord? Just a thought.

Back to Gideon. He was in a winepress threshing some wheat. This picture shows an ancient winepress. The next one shows a threshing floor.

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threshing_floor

Note the difference. The threshing floor is an open area where the wind can blow easier (perhaps like the Holy Spirit?) . Gideon was in a winepress. He was trying to thresh the wheat in a secret place. Only fearful people do such things. Wheat was meant to be tossed into the air out in the open. This way, the wind could separate the wheat from the chaff. It is much more difficult if you are hiding in an enclosed space.

But that is what happens when doing evil in the eyes of the Lord. We are meant for one thing but we are doing another. Our actions are secret or hidden instead of being lived out. But if you are discouraged about that, the story is not over. 

Verse 12 shows how God feels about Gideon. Here is the verse, “When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”

Boom! Gideon was not a warrior, he was in a winepress! However, God feels differently.

Your surroundings should not dictate your status. Your circumstances do not negate your christianity. Your foes can’t take away your faith.

Gideon needed a supernatural reminder of his position. I think that you and I could use reminders now and again, don’t you?

Well consider this your reminder. God created you. You are a mighty warrior! Get out of your winepress and get to the business of God.  

Have a victorious week. More on Gideon next time. God bless!