Philippians 3:13-14 (AMP)
13 I do not consider, brethren, that I have captured and made it my own [yet]; but one thing I do [it is my one aspiration]: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal to win the [supreme and heavenly] prize to which God in Christ Jesus is calling us upward.
Forward march! We hear this in the military, but it also applies to our Christian walk. Forward march means to go ahead with our efforts, to forget our pasts but learn from them. It also means to look and march forward diligently and with optimism to the future.
Synonyms for forward march are advancement,
development, growth, improvement, promotion, and getting ahead.
Forward march! Forget those things which are behind you—our conduct should not be regulated nor influenced by that of others; if others think they have time to mess about, you don’t: time is flying, eternity is round the bend and all is at stake.
Life and circumstances have kept some of us marching on the spot instead of forward, we think standing still will either make a situation go away or that magic will happen without us actively doing anything about it. But our text tells otherwise; we’ve got to reach forth, pointing out that sweating (labour) is necessary for the race of life and eternity; every muscle and nerve will be used.
We must press in and forward to get to that place, the way of truth and righteousness is a straight line that we must walk forward on if we desire to see all the Lord planned for us manifested according to Deuteronomy 5:32.
Even when we encounter obstacles, we must remain focused and not allow distractions, according to Proverbs 4:25 to change the cause of our marching, if you need a solution to the obstacle be sure that it keeps you marching forward and not taking a detour.
Sometimes, we stay on a spot because there is either no clear path for us to march on or we are confused on how to proceed, no worries there, the Lord says in Psalm 32:8 that He will instruct us, He will give us all the required assistance, and teach us on how, when, and where to march forward, but only as long as we focus on Him and not on ourselves according to proverbs 3:5-6.
Have you remained too long on a spot? The Lord is saying to you in Deuteronomy 1:6, “you have remained in the space long enough.” Long enough, it’s time for forward march, start moving and keep on moving.
Do not allow experience and circumstances to make you reluctant to march forward, don’t even allow any previous blessing or favour from the Lord to keep you in a particular spot, don’t stay there hoping for more when the Lord has better for you in front, the Israelites stayed almost a year in a spot due to past blessing, with God, that’s unprofitable because He always gives us new pastures to occupy and conquer. Since Jesus is the way and the truth according to John 14:6, we are therefore not marching on an uncharted path but one certified by the Lord.
Have confidence according to 1 John 5:14 that whatever you ask of the Lord that is within His will, He will give to you and everything else associated with that giving to glorify His name.
If we choose to follow Jesus, our singular focus must be on the work of God’s kingdom according to Luke 9:62. Forward march!
Shalom