Pressing On
I decided recently that I should pay closer attention to my health and so I've taken up running. I was motivated by a desire to add some healthy discipline to my life and by my staunch resistence to moving up a waist size the next time I buy jeans. Anyway, this evening when I was enjoying a quick run before dinner, I was reminded of a simple truth: pressing on in pursuit of a goal sometimes requires focusing no further than the next step. Let me expalin. The mid-point of my typical run is the top of a fairly steep hill. I can see the top of the hill for several hundred yards out. For a novice runner like me, the incline is pretty tough and results in cramping calves and burning lungs. I find that when I focus on the hill ahead in the distance, I begin to entertain thoughts of quiting early. Do I really want to put myself through the pain? What's so important about this last half mile? Does it really matter if I make it up the hill? The hill can seem insurmountable when in becomes my focus. But I find that if I shift my focus to the road directly ahead of me; where I will plant my next step in the dirt, the task becomes much more manageable and even enjoyable. You see, there is nothing overwhelming about the simplicity of taking the next step, and then the next. Sometimes it is important for us to look no further than where we will plant our next step, recognizing that no matter how difficult or challenging our goal may be, each single step puts us closer to the prize.
In life, circumstances can seem overwhelming and goals can seem out of reach. Maybe it's the 24 semester hours remaining in your quest for your MBA degree. Maybe it's the 130 minutes remaining in a center seat on a late night flight home. Maybe it's the 18 months remaining until you get to see your family and friends back in "the States." Or maybe it's the 6 more weeks of chemotherapy or radiation treatment you must endure. Consider the importance of pressing on, on step at a time, and rejoicing in the fact that you are moving toward the prize!
Paul to the Phillipians (3:13-14) "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal ofor the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
In life, circumstances can seem overwhelming and goals can seem out of reach. Maybe it's the 24 semester hours remaining in your quest for your MBA degree. Maybe it's the 130 minutes remaining in a center seat on a late night flight home. Maybe it's the 18 months remaining until you get to see your family and friends back in "the States." Or maybe it's the 6 more weeks of chemotherapy or radiation treatment you must endure. Consider the importance of pressing on, on step at a time, and rejoicing in the fact that you are moving toward the prize!
Paul to the Phillipians (3:13-14) "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal ofor the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
Labels: Faith, Motivation
posted by jb at 6:13 PM
3 Comments:
I know how ya feel! I love the thought of being a dental hygienist but it seems like every day that I sit in Microbiology or Theory of Dental Hygiene Practice I contemplate quitting before the next exam. Then Friday always comes and I walk down the hall to the waiting room, call a name and a friendly face follows me to my dental chair, sits for three hours then gives me a box of chocolates because it's their last of four appointments and they won't get to see me for another six months. The race may be difficult but blessings are abundant at the finish line.
Like Sarah, I can remember some finish lines, too. & they are sweet. One of the reasons that they are sweet is because I can remember the trouble it took to get there & feel a sense of accomplishment.
But all that does not really even begin to approach the real reason that we press on. We continue on doing good because Jesus didn't quit.
Col 3:23 ...whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord...
My $.02
Thanks for the post....it is refreshing for me to remember to stop looking at the end of the semester, and just focus on what God has for me right now.
Thanks,
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