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Champion Marksman
June 3, 2010
Matt Emmons, Olympic gold medalist in rifle shooting in 2004, was set to win another event at Athens. He had a commanding lead and hoped to make a direct bull’s-eye on his last shot. But something went wrong—he hit the target, but he was aiming at the wrong one! That wrong focus dropped him to eighth place and cost him a medal.
In Paul’s letter to the Philippians, he expressed the importance of focusing on the right target in our Christian life. “I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus,” he said (3:14).
Paul used the term “goal” in an illustration of an athlete running a race. Interestingly, the same word was also used of a target for shooting arrows. In both cases, the prospect of winning depends on being focused. For the believer that focus should be a lifetime pursuit of becoming more like our Savior Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:28-29; Gal. 5:22-23).
What is your focus today? Are you preoccupied with getting ahead and making life more comfortable? If you’re a believer, the right target to shoot for is to become more like the Son of God (2 Cor. 3:18). Today make sure you are aiming at the right target!
I have one deep supreme desire,
That I may be like Jesus.
To this I fervently aspire,
That I may be like Jesus. —Chisholm
To make the most of your life, make God’s goals your goals.
Read: Philippians 3:7-14
I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. —
Philippians 3:142 Corinthians 3:18
“ 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, care being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as 2by the Spirit of the Lord.”
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Thank you, for today's devotional. When first learning to ride a bicycle all wobbly and shaky, it became apparent to me quickly, that if there was a rock in the path and it was something I wanted to miss, the thing to do was not focus on the rock ... guess what, I hit the rock.
An important lesson, what we focus on is what we create, have, keep in our life. One of the scriptures that is a hard to grasp in a way is ... is The heart is deceptive to the very end.
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Jeremiah 17:9 (King James Version)
“9.The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”
and
King James Bible
“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”
excerpt from Bible Browser
Proverbs 4:23
“Or above all keepings; we must keep our hearts with more care and diligence than we keep any thing else. We must keep our eyes (Job 31:1), keep our tongues (Ps. 34:13), keep our feet (Eccl. 5:1), but, above all, keep our hearts.
A good reason given for this care, because out of it are the issues of life. Out of a heart well kept will flow living issues, good products, to the glory of God and the edification of others. Or, in general, all the actions of the life flow from the heart, and therefore keeping that is making the tree good and healing the springs. Our lives will be regular or irregular, comfortable or uncomfortable, according as our hearts are kept or neglected.
We must set a watch before the door of our lips, that we offend not with out tongue (v. 24): Put away from thee a froward mouth and perverse lips ...”
http://www.biblebrowser.com/proverbs/4-23.htm
