Pressing Toward the Mark

I remember a few years ago sitting in a home bible study with my family and a few other family friends on a Wednesday night. I'll admit, I was slightly checked out thinking about all the trivial things that grab our attention in church but present enough to catch bits and pieces of the discussion that was taking place. My Dad was facilitating the edification out of Philippians 3, a passage that has been repeatedly quoted, discussed and dissected for its captivating message but tonight, unbeknownst to myself, I would let it change my life forever. We reached Phillipians 3:14 and my dad read: "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." He paused here.
"The press. That's interesting. What do you think about that, Lauren?"

The gears began to spin, the wheels creaked under the slow turn.
"Paul is reaching for something. Christ. His Kingdom. Just Him. Who He is. He's the prize, the main goal. The call. That's what we aim towards. Press. That means you have opposition; something's pressing back." And then it clicked and this one word revolutionized my world, my walk with God, my outlook on ministry. Everything. I've always been ambitious. I've always enjoyed the push, the press. For good grades, broadening my intellectual horizons, learning new things, and in a roundabout way, tenaciously pursuing passion. But had God been the goal, the prize, the main event in my life. Was He truly the finish line at the end of the race? And of course, I had faced opposition, but was I letting it propel me or hinder me? What was my life reaching for?

I walked away that night feeling something different. Not exponentially changed- no- but different. Something very subtle had been carved in my heart. I would read and re-read that passage, letting it sink into my soul. I would constantly mull, chew and digest Paul's words as they imprinted themselves on my heart- before I went to bed, when I woke up. And that one word "press" ignited a passion in me bred from sincere conviction. That was my Junior year of high school. Now, going into my Sophomore year at Indiana Bible College, I can say this word has pushed me farther than I ever could've imagined. It's a concept rooted in tenacity. It means putting on blinders, and letting the tunnel vision secured on Christ guide you in the journey. Pressing toward the mark. Stripping away the weights of sin, letting go of past mistakes and running to obtain. There is a mark we are striving to meet. There is a destination that our course is destined for. I am pressing, you are pressing, we- the collective body of Christ- are pressing foward. It requires energy, it requres sacrifice. Yes we encounter resistance, yes fleshly doubts cloud our vision, but we must press on. The world is making us a seemingly incredible offer, but it's one that we have to refuse. Pursuing, pushing, pressing to expand God's kingdom, to become the vessel and the runner He desires us to be.

Cheerio, folks. That's all for now.