“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me… Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal…”
— Philippians 3:12–14
Let me tell you something about us dogs.
We’re not perfect. Not even close.
Sometimes we chase the wrong things.
Sometimes we dig where we shouldn’t dig.
Sometimes we roll in stuff that smelled like a good idea at the time but turns out to be mighty embarrassing when my human finds out.
But here’s the thing about a good dog…
He keeps getting up.
You see, the Apostle Paul said something that sounds a lot like a dog learning to follow his human.
He said he hadn’t arrived yet.
Hadn’t finished the race.
Hadn’t gotten everything right.
Now that right there encourages an old dog like me.
Because sometimes I look back over the trail behind me and see a lot of crooked pawprints.
Places where I wandered off the path.
Places where I chased squirrels that didn’t matter.
Places where I ignored my human’s whistle.
And if I spent all my time staring backward at that trail… well… I’d probably just sit down in the dirt and whimper.
But Paul says something very wise.
He says, forgetting what is behind… and pressing on toward what is ahead.
Now dogs understand pressing on.
You ever seen a dog when he gets a scent? Nose down, tail straight, ears perked up… and he just keeps moving. Through fences. In the briars. Across creeks. Nothing much stops him because he’s locked in on where he’s going.
That’s how Paul says we ought to follow Jesus.
Not sitting around licking our wounds from yesterday.
Not laying in the shade thinking about old mistakes.
Not giving up because we tripped on the trail.
No sir.
We get up.
We fix our eyes on the Master.
And we keep trotting down the path behind Him.
Now I may be an old lazy dog, but even I know this much:
The Master didn’t grab hold of us so we could quit halfway down the trail.
He grabbed hold of us so we could finish the journey.
And the good news is this — every step we take pressing forward… we’re heading closer to home.
So if you’ve stumbled lately…
If your trail behind you looks a little messy…
If you feel like you haven’t quite become the dog the Master called you to be…
Take heart.
Even Paul said he wasn’t there yet.
So shake the dust off your paws.
Lift your head.
Listen for the Master’s voice.
And press on.
Because the trail ahead still leads somewhere wonderful.
And a faithful dog always keeps following his Master.
Keep the Faith… Carpe Diem
