Pressing…
While we all like to think we are giving our all to a project or task and the ten percent assuage of our brain has been proven to be a myth, most of us still don’t utilize our full brain capacity. While the brain is not a muscle, it must be exercised like a muscle. If we treat our brain like we treat our bodies, and don’t give it nourishing food or exercise, it will not function at full capacity. Like everything else in life we have to "press" in a little further than normal to get the maximum benefit.
While people who don’t eat vegetables or get enough protein may survive for a long while. Sooner or later, something is going to attack their immune system and they will not have the built in stamina to resist it. The is true of our mental capacity. While the neurons in the brain function at will on a regular basis, sooner or later you will encounter something more complex that needs a trained mind to figure out. The same is true of our spiritual life. While we can get by with our capacity to respond emotionally in a civilized manner most of the time, there does come instances when that capacity is stressed and strained beyond our ability to handle it. What do we do? Paul found one solution:
I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14 (KJV)
While this speaks more specifically to the type of action that it takes to reach the high calling of Jesus, I like what The Passion Translation says:
I run straight for the divine invitation of reaching the heavenly goal and gaining the victory-prize through the anointing of Jesus. Philippians 3:14 (TPT)
While there is a specific action taken by Paul (he runs), the access to gaining the victory comes from "the anointing of Jesus".
This is good news to me. Over the span of my life I have learned some of my limitations. I know that there are some things I am better at than others. For example, I lean more toward the social sciences than the natural sciences. Although I am analytic, I don’t want to work too hard in dealing with higher math problems. Hence, when I am faced with something I am not naturally good at, I try my best to avoid it. What I learned about this however is that it makes a lazy brain. Over the years I have delved into certain areas that were beyond my natural ability and even my interest to see if I could learn them. I found every time that pressing my brain was not enough. I had to press into God to help my brain push through what was difficult information in order to be able to comprehend it.
Again,this is the good news! While our brain can naturally ascertain much more than we give it credit for; when we reach our limitations, the anointing of Jesus can help our brain gain access to a place of understanding that literally will take you to another world!
Nothing is impossible with God! So we work in our own strength, and then press into His strength, and we see unbelievable things happen in our lives:
Now to Him who is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly more than all that we dare ask or think [infinitely beyond our greatest prayers, hopes, or dreams]. Ephesians 3:20 (AMP)
Maria