Verse of the Day - weekend 8/8

Through the Bible - Psalms 85-90, Romans 10:5-11:12

 

Good morning,

I ended Friday's devotional with" I am yearning and aspiring to .........".  How did you end that statement?  Would it be different if it ended with "for God"?

I received an e-mail recently from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Foundation in which Billy Graham stated that the desire on his heart was to preach one more evangelistic sermon.  He was and is asking for prayer support to that end.

He has arguably been one of the greatest evangelists of history.  His hearts desire, his aspiration, was echoed by Paul in Philippians 3.  Like Paul, Billy Graham is still straining towards what lies ahead and the upward call of Christ.

Philippians 3:13-14 (Amplified Bible) I do not consider, brethren, that I have captured and made it my own [yet]; but one thing I do [it is my one aspiration]: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,  ¹⁴I press on toward the goal to win the [supreme and heavenly] prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward.

Do you have a work, a ministry that you are involved in that you'd want to be involved in until your dying day?  For Paul, Billy Graham, missionaries that I've heard about, and pastors that I know,  (even after "retiring" continue to serve as an interim pastor or other ministry), their life, their aspiration, is to press on to whatever the Holy Spirit has laid on their heart to do.

 

The overarching thing in their lives was the upward call of Christ, bringing others into His Kingdom.  They didn't lose their love and affection for others, instead they became channels for God's love to them.

For some reason, the Beattles song "In My Life" came to mind, primarily the following stanza.  I edited the you to "You".

Though I know I'll never lose affection
For people and things that went before
I know I'll often stop and think about them
In my life, I'll love You more

Read the passage below.  How does it speak to and inspire you today?

In Christ,
Mike
mikevw@bellsouth.net
http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com
Eph 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace  NIV
 ^{Colassians 3:7} But whatever former things I had that might have been gains to me, I have come to consider as [one combined] loss for Christ's sake.

    ⁸Yes, furthermore, I count everything as loss compared to the possession of the priceless privilege (the overwhelming preciousness, the surpassing worth, and supreme advantage) of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord and of progressively becoming more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him [of perceiving and recognizing and understanding Him more fully and clearly]. For His sake I have lost everything and consider it all to be mere rubbish (refuse, dregs), in order that I may win (gain) Christ (the Anointed One),

    ⁹And that I may [actually] be found and known as in Him, not having any [self-achieved] righteousness that can be called my own, based on my obedience to the Law's demands (ritualistic uprightness and supposed right standing with God thus acquired), but possessing that [genuine righteousness] which comes through faith in Christ (the Anointed One), the [truly] right standing with God, which comes from God by [saving] faith.

    ¹⁰[For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly], and that I may in that same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection [which it exerts over believers], and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed [in spirit into His likeness even] to His death, [in the hope]

    ¹¹That if possible I may attain to the [spiritual and moral] resurrection [that lifts me] out from among the dead [even while in the body].

    ¹²Not that I have now attained [this ideal], or have already been made perfect, but I press on to lay hold of (grasp) and make my own, that for which Christ Jesus (the Messiah) has laid hold of me and made me His own.

    ¹³I do not consider, brethren, that I have captured and made it my own [yet]; but one thing I do [it is my one aspiration]: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,

    ¹⁴I press on toward the goal to win the [supreme and heavenly] prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward.

    ¹⁵So let those [of us] who are spiritually mature and full-grown have this mind and hold these convictions; and if in any respect you have a different attitude of mind, God will make that clear to you also.

    ¹⁶Only let us hold true to what we have already attained and walk and order our lives by that.