February 7

Vision And Purpose

Then I asked, ‘What should I do, Lord?’ ‘Get up and go into Damascus,’ He told me. ‘There you will be told all that you have been appointed to do.’ — Acts 22:10 BSB

Not 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. Brothers, 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, I press on toward the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly calling in Christ Jesus. — Phil 3:12-14 BSB

When Paul was suddenly brought into the presence of the Eternal, his entire life changed. In a flash of light, he saw the risen Savior and realized that he had been fighting against God’s plan of redemption. That vision changed the course of his life. From that moment on, Paul forgot what was behind and pressed forward to take hold of the purpose for which Christ had taken hold of him. It became his ambition to build his life according to the pattern God had shown him.

Years later, as Paul reflected on his life’s work—the churches he had planted, the cities he had evangelized, the letters he had written—surely he could have thought that he had "arrived." But even as he climbed higher in his walk with God, he saw new heights beyond what he had yet attained. Isn’t that true for us as well? When we compare God’s vision for our lives with what we have achieved, we realize how much further we have to go. We may wish we could reclaim the lost years to do things better. Yet God forgives our mistakes, just as a mother forgives her child’s clumsy attempts to help. “Not that we have already attained or are already perfect, but we press on,” knowing that God accepts our efforts, flawed though they may be.

What can we do to reach our ideals? We must spend more time in fellowship with Christ, being conformed to His image. Like the psalmist, we must say, “Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is nothing on earth I desire besides You.” As we gaze on Him, we are transformed into His likeness. Martyrs, reformers, scholars, parents, teachers, preachers, and missionaries have all stood in God’s presence until they saw His vision for their lives. Then they knew that what God calls us to, He will enable us to achieve. “All things are possible to the one who believes.”

Prayer

Grant me grace, O Lord, to know what I ought to do, and give me the power to faithfully fulfill it. Amen.