“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
Memory tip: This phrase is about honesty before God — admitting we’re still growing. Try saying it first thing each morning, before you check your phone.
“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
Today we begin forty days of prayer and fasting, and Paul’s words meet us right where we start: he hadn’t arrived either. Whatever brought you into this season — a need, a burden, a hunger for more of God — start honestly. You don’t have to pretend you have it all together to be here.
Lord, I come to you honest about what I lack. I haven’t arrived, and I don’t have to pretend I have. Meet me in this season. Amen.
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“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
An empty stomach has a way of exposing what we’ve been filling ourselves with instead of God. If today is one of your fasting days, let hunger become a prayer instead of a complaint. If it isn’t, ask God for a different kind of hunger today — for His presence, His word, His will.
Father, whether today is my fasting day or not, give me a deeper hunger for you than for anything else. Amen.
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“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
It’s tempting to measure your walk with God against someone else’s — their faith, their discipline, their apparent breakthrough. Paul refused that comparison. He measured himself only against the goal: Christ. Whoever you’re quietly comparing yourself to today, let them go.
God, free me from comparing my journey to anyone else’s. Keep my eyes on you, not on who seems further ahead. Amen.
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“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
Not having arrived is not the same as failing. Paul says this without shame — almost with relief. There is real freedom in admitting you’re unfinished, because it means grace still has work to do in you.
Lord, thank you that I don’t have to be finished to be loved by you. Keep shaping me. Amen.
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“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
A few verses earlier, Paul lists an impressive resume of religious achievement — and calls it garbage compared to knowing Christ. If even Paul hadn’t arrived, none of our credentials will get us there either.
Jesus, I lay down what I’ve been trusting instead of you. You are enough. Amen.
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“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
Fasting can start to feel like a performance — something to get right, to prove — on the days we choose to fast. But this whole passage is Paul refusing performance and choosing pursuit instead. Rest today in the fact that God isn’t grading anyone’s fast.
Father, I release the pressure to do this perfectly. I just want to be near you today. Amen.
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“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,”
One week in. Take a moment to look back honestly: where has hunger — for food, for God — surfaced something in you this week? Say this week’s phrase once more, slowly, and let it settle.
Lord, thank you for this first week. Whatever it stirred up in me, I bring it to you now. Amen.