[font=Times, Times New Roman]"All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained." Phillipians 3:15,16[/font]
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This is a great challenge for us. All Christians have grown, and as Christians, we continue to grow. God will never leave us stagnate, as He longs for us to reach perfection. We have all reached a place right now. For some, that place is discovering God for the first time, for others, it is reaching a new level of intamacy with your Heavenly Father. Wherever we fall, we are all somewhere. Paul is telling us to always live up to our full potential based on where we are. Dont lose footing and go backwards in the growth process.
I like to go rock climbing. Its just something I do for fun. I'm still a novice, so I'm not very good, but Ive come a long was since I started. Every time I work on a climb I know how far I got the last time on the particualr route I am trying to conquer. I know that I should at least be able to get that far when I climb the same route again. If I dont go with the expectation of reaching that goal I will never grow, and I will never complete any of the courses. In fact, I would probably loose some of the strength I had before. With that loss of strength, I would regress and have to struggle to get back to the place that I was. In order to grow, and become a better climber, I have to live up to what have already attained."
Its the same way with the Christian life. God wont ask us to do any more than we are capable of, but to continue growing and become closer to Him, we must live up to our full potential. In everything we do, we must give our highest honor so that we may grow closer to God and discover His awesomeness more and more each day. (Read the story of Joseph in Genesis 30-50 to find out more about how he did this in his own life.)
Lord, please help me to always give my very best for you. Give me the strength and courage to live up to what I have already attained. Help me to continually grow and mature in your love. In your name, Amen.
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[font=Times, Times New Roman]
This is a great challenge for us. All Christians have grown, and as Christians, we continue to grow. God will never leave us stagnate, as He longs for us to reach perfection. We have all reached a place right now. For some, that place is discovering God for the first time, for others, it is reaching a new level of intamacy with your Heavenly Father. Wherever we fall, we are all somewhere. Paul is telling us to always live up to our full potential based on where we are. Dont lose footing and go backwards in the growth process.
I like to go rock climbing. Its just something I do for fun. I'm still a novice, so I'm not very good, but Ive come a long was since I started. Every time I work on a climb I know how far I got the last time on the particualr route I am trying to conquer. I know that I should at least be able to get that far when I climb the same route again. If I dont go with the expectation of reaching that goal I will never grow, and I will never complete any of the courses. In fact, I would probably loose some of the strength I had before. With that loss of strength, I would regress and have to struggle to get back to the place that I was. In order to grow, and become a better climber, I have to live up to what have already attained."
Its the same way with the Christian life. God wont ask us to do any more than we are capable of, but to continue growing and become closer to Him, we must live up to our full potential. In everything we do, we must give our highest honor so that we may grow closer to God and discover His awesomeness more and more each day. (Read the story of Joseph in Genesis 30-50 to find out more about how he did this in his own life.)
Lord, please help me to always give my very best for you. Give me the strength and courage to live up to what I have already attained. Help me to continually grow and mature in your love. In your name, Amen.
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