Finish Well
Are you feeling stuck in you Christian Journey? Perhaps unable to process what it may look like to persevere.
WE ALL want to Live life to the fullest, but to do that, we must have goals to aim for. Few of us actually take the time to consider where we’re going. How tragic it would be to finish our life and find out we were on a wrong course other than God’s; fighting the wrong fight and struggling to keep the faith.
The apostle Paul is a good model for us…living life to the fullest. His goals were to know Christ, abide in His power, fellowship in His suffering, and preach the gospel (Philippians 3:10); (1 Corinthians 1:17). Paul aligned his aspirations with the Lord’s, diligently worked to fulfill his calling, and persevered through suffering. He could face the end of his life with confidence since he’d “fought the good fight….finished the course.. and kept the faith ” (2Timothy 4:7). Paul has no regrets about his past. He uses images of a runner, a fighter and a guard to emphasize that he has finished well. In the Greek– the word order of this verse is different and very telling as it reads: “The good fight, I have fought… It is not about Paul and his accomplishments but on the fight, the race, the faith-and thereby, on God’s grace.
If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’ve been getting. Don’t settle for the mediocrity of an unplanned life. Jeremiah 29:11, says; For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Though this particular promise was given to the exiles living in Babylon and was a promise that the Lord would bring them back from exile. So it is with believers today. We have hope that God would bring good out of our situation and that our difficulties and hardship is not God’s final word for the believer. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. (Jeremiah 29:12). We’re all encouraged by a leader who stirs us to move ahead, someone who believes we can do the task he has given and who will be with us all the way. God is that kind of leader. He knows the future and His plans for us are always good and full of hope. As long as God, who knows the future, provides our agenda and goes with us as we fulfill His mission, we can have boundless hope. This does not mean that we will be spared pain, suffering, or hardship, but that God will see us through to a glorious conclusion.
I encourage you to set aside some time this week to get alone with God. Then ask for His help in setting goals that will take you where He wants you to go. Think about every area of your life, personal, relational, financial, and vocational–but make spiritual goals your primary emphasis.
Let God help you change direction so you can pursue things that align with His Will. Then start living intentionally.
Be Encouraged Today !
As you begin Living Life Intentionally!
