June 22
What Drives Us
“I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”
The word press in this verse means to pursue, to speed on earnestly. The apostle Paul wrote these words to a group of believers in the city of Philippi while he was in Rome under house arrest. Paul had endured a great deal of suffering at the hands of his captors, and now even while in chains, he writes these powerful words to God’s people. There is only one goal that Paul pursues, only one that he hastens to obtain. It’s not to be free, it’s not to be cleared of all the false charges that had been made against him. It wasn’t to be free from hunger, from beatings, or from his accusers, but it his one and only pursuit, his only desire was the upward call of God in Christ Jesus; the upward call to be all that God wanted him to be. The call that would find no righteousness within himself derived from the law, but a righteousness that is found only in Jesus.
His prize, his reward was the upward call of God. This was his hearts’ only passion, his only drive, his one true joy, his endurance through the suffering. This could have very easily been the place that Paul could have decided that he had given enough for God. This could have been the hour that Paul said “I quit, I’ve done enough, what more can I give”? But he didn’t. In the midst of one of Paul’s darkest hours we hear the cry of a warrior saying, “I will not go quietly in the night.” We hear the heart of a child of God, birthed from the womb of Calvary, as every beat seems to echo; “I press on.” Satisfaction was a stranger to Paul.
Thomas Edison once said; “Show me a satisfied man, and I will show you a failure.” Complacency is the ever lurching enemy of the passionate heart. The secret to spiritual success is dissatisfaction, and the secret to ruin is satisfaction. It involves putting every earthly desire, every fleshly need, even if justified, aside, completely out of view. It is a relentless pursuing of Jesus and not resting until you have laid hold of that for which you were laid hold of. A steadfast determination of soul that will not rest until Jesus is seen with unveiled eye dwelling within them.
I will not stand still today.
Pearls of Grace is a book of devotions for the entire year, including a read through the Bible in a year calendar, broken down for every day. Beautifully written with encouraging words of hope and empowering words of joy and strength for every woman. Pam draws from the truth and richness of God's Word and gives real life examples in her down to earth style. A must have in your library, click here for more information.
For more from Pam Jenkins and Jabbok Ministries, please visit www.jabbokministries.com!
Listen to Pam Jenkins's daily broadcast on OnePlace.com.
For more from Pam Jenkins and Jabbok Ministries, please visit www.jabbokministries.com!
Listen to Pam Jenkins's daily broadcast on OnePlace.com.
