As the apostle Paul was describing the unique advantages of his past, he made it clear that he was not resting upon these blessings as the assurance of his future salvation. He saw the need to press ahead in his growth and development as a servant of the Lord.

"Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 3:12-14, emphasis mine - HR).

At the risk of belaboring a sore point, this last year has been very difficult for an unusually large number of our members. There has been much pain and sorrow. However, it would be unfair for us to fail to acknowledge the blessings of this past year. Off the top of my head I think of four families who happily welcomed babies into their homes. We started off the year with a baptism in January, ended with four baptisms in December, and had others in between. New people got into the rotation as teachers in our children's Bible Classes. We had an encouraging Youth Lecture and Vacation Bible School, as well as two good Gospel Meetings with Mike Pittman and Jesse Flowers.

While hardship and loss can be experienced every year, the beginning of a new year should bring us excitement and hope. I encourage all of us to follow the example of Paul in "forgetting" the bad things which are behind us in 2016 and "reaching forward" to embrace and enjoy the blessings that God will give us in 2017. Let's press on. There are better things ahead.