Vulnerability

COULD WE REVISIT those words Paul wrote? “I have not achieved it . . . forgetting the past . . . looking forward to what lies ahead.” Paul’s openness is best described with one word: vulnerability. “I have not achieved/reached it” is a concept Paul mentions no less than three times in Philippians 3:10–14. Read these words again; see if you can find each of the three:

Determination

THOSE WHO REFUSE to get bogged down in and anchored to the past are those who pursue the objectives of the future. People who do this are never petty. They are too involved in getting a job done to be preoccupied with yesterday’s hurts and today’s disappointments. Do you need some fresh encouragement to press on today? Read Paul’s testimony:

How’s Your Attitude?

I LOVE THE STORY OF a sea captain who, while navigating his ship through a storm, found himself on a collision course with what he thought was a large vessel in the distance. He ordered the approaching vessel to alter its course ten degrees south. The reply came back: “Alter your course ten degrees north.” Incensed, the captain shot back, “Alter your course ten degrees south.

An Unexpected Gift

CHRISTMAS DAY NEVER arrived so slowly, but finally it dawned. While no one was looking, I had shaken the box enough to know that it had to contain what I had been wanting so badly—right size, right weight, everything. When my turn came I tore at the wrapping and ribbon, pulled open the top, and to my disbelieving eyes there it was, a world globe the exact size, shape, and weight of a basketball!

An Attitude of Genuine Thanksgiving

Paul had an attitude of genuine thanksgiving: “Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word.”

An Attitude of Strong Determination

Paul commands believers to possess the attitude of strong determination. He confesses, “Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind . . .” (Philippians 3:13–14).

Learned Contentment

Paul recommends an attitude of unselfish humility. Quite remarkably, you never read where Paul said to his Roman guard, “I need you to do me a favor. . .”

Secret to Contentment

Paul is under house arrest in rented quarters; he refuses to focus on that. He is far from home, and his future is uncertain; he doesn’t let that concern him. He is bound to a Roman guard every day; no problem.

Despite Your Circumstances

Few people in the first century had a deeper understanding of God’s grace than the apostle Paul. Redeemed from a life of vicious brutality as a rigid legalistic Pharisee, the man turned the corner, repented, . . .

Awakening Grace

Want a boost of encouragement? Our God is working toward that end in all of His children. It is His constant pursuit, His daily agenda, as He points us toward our final destination, “the Celestial City,” as Bunyan calls it. Having cleansed our hearts of the debris of inward corruptions and the dust of sin’s domination, God is now daily at work awakening grace within us, perfecting our character and bringing it to completion.

Tag Archives: Philippians