My goal is …
Summary: Goals are an important part of living, and spiritual goals are no different.
Popular sales trainer and motivational speaker Zig Ziglar was known for saying, “If you aim at nothing, you will hit nothing.” The wisdom of his saying is undeniable. What we aim for in life determines, to a large extent, where we end up and what we do.
Paul knew what he was aiming for. His goal for the believers who had not yet met him was the same goal he had for those who knew him: He wanted them to understand the Gospel.
It seems likely that Paul had never personally been to Colossae. In his letter to the church in Rome, he explains:
“It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.” (Romans 15:20)
It is Paul’s goal to preach Jesus wherever the Gospel has not yet been heard. Yet, it is clear he wants the true Gospel to be understood equally well at all the churches, not just the ones he started.
As we think about what Paul is saying here, it is worth considering his example. Do we have a goal, too?
Another Zig Ziglar saying goes like this: “If you want to know what is really important to you, look at your checkbook and your calendar.“
There is a lot of wisdom in this saying, too!
Paul’s checkbook was almost always empty because he poured his money into his mission for God. His calendar, on the other hand, was always full. He was never lacking for someone to share the Gospel with.
Paul’s goal came from Jesus. His mission was clear, and he lived it every day. Jesus has a mission for us, too. The simple version is to love God above all else and love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22: 37-40). The long version includes details specific to who God made you to be.
Application: If you don’t know your goal, ask God. He’ll tell you.
Food for Thought: What happens to Christians who don’t have a goal?
I have always believed that no one can stand still, we are always moving towards something. What that something is has a lot to do with what we treasure. Also, when we don’t make good choices as to what direction we are going in, we tend to be reactive rather that proactive. We allow the world to define our direction, rather than allow Christ to call us toward Him.
Proverbs 21:5 The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.
For Christians, the goal is the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. If for Christians, this is not the goal, then one will find themselves falling back into the old self.
Philippians 3:13-14 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
The upward call of God in Christ Jesus is more than a claim, it is a life dedicated to studying the Word, prayer, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and a heart that desires to be more like Christ. It is a life of compassion and acting in faith. The goal is not to achieve but to receive, and then to share the light of Christ in word and deed.
Chris —
Thank you! I love your synopsis: “The goal is not to achieve but to receive.” There is a lot of wisdom in that. 🙂
I really liked Chris’s comments. As you said in your devotion: if you aim at nothing you will hit it every time. Paul’s goal really was Jesus. He was someone consumed with Jesus, walking with Jesus, living like Jesus, sharing Jesus. It seems like a good goal for all of us.
Philippians 3: 7 – 14: But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in a Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. 10I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
12Not 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. 13Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Thank you, Rich!
Verse 12 is interesting: “… I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”
There is a lot of depth there! 🙂