“Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 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.” Philippians 3:12-14.Dear Father, God of our present and future, you know us better than anyone. You can see our strengths and our weaknesses. You know what is in our minds. You see the real intents of our hearts. You know that we are not perfect and that we have a long way to go in spiritual growth.

We have not arrived at our goal of Christ being fully formed in us. We confess that we are more like our old selves than we are like him. But we thank you that you do allow us to forget the failures of the past because of the power of the cleansing blood of the cross.

Today, we look toward the future and the possibilities of becoming more like Christ and our full redemption in glory.

Amen.