Philippians 3:8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ


What does it mean to count all things loss? That's the question that sticks out to me. The more I think on it the more it leads me to believe that it's not talking only about possessions. Many times I look at loss and think it's merely items or money. But Paul tells us he counts all things loss, and not for nothing, but for the knowledge of Christ Jesus and yes, it is excellent. To count all things loss is to already have all things given up into the hands of God, holding on to nothing. This means letting go of all plans, all desires and all things. The pursuit of money, that well paying job, that Ivy League college that trust fund. Even the dreams of ministry. Wanting to serve at a specific church under a specific group of people in a specific ministry. Let it go. Now, I've come to realize that just because you give these things up and give them into the hands of the Lord, does not mean that they are no longer possible. In fact, I believe it's made even more possible being that those dreams are in the hands of the One who could make it happen. Paul tells us that he counts them all as rubbish, that I may gain Christ. I believe that applies to all of the above that was spoken about. All of it is rubbish, yes even the ministry desires. It's all rubbish unless Christ is in it. If you gain those things and God's hand is not upon your life all of that is in vain and good for nothing. To be quite honest, in light of the fact that we gain Christ through sacrificing our desires ought to inspire us to truly count all things loss. I truly don't look at it in that perspective and with that being said, it makes it so much harder to let certain things go. There's some things I need to leave in the hands of Jesus and know that I may or may not get them back but in light of the fact that I gain Christ, I count those things once dear to me as Rubbish.


Application: I will make a list of things I need to let go of and share them with my team and pray about it afterwards.

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