In my mentor Dr. John C. Maxwell’s book, Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Learn he shares this…

There’s a story of a salesman from the eastern United States who arrived at a frontier town somewhere in the Old West.  As the salesman was talking with the owner of the general store a rancher came in .  The owner excused himself to take care of the customer. The rancher gave the storekeeper a list of things he needed, but he wanted credit  to purchase them. 

“Are you doing any fencing this spring?” asked the storekeeper. 

“Sure am,” said the rancher.

“Fencing in or fencing out?”

“Fencing in. Taking in another 360 acres across the creek,”

“Good to hear it’ Josh. You got credit. Just tell Harry out back what you need.”

The salesman was confused. “I’ve  seen all kinds of credit systems” he said, “ but never one like that. How does it work?”

“Well,” said the storekeeper, “ if a man’s fencing out, that means he’s on the defensive, just trying to keep what he’s got. Bur if he’s fencing in, he’s growing and getting bigger. I always give credit to a man who’s fencing in, because that means he’s got hope.”

This story illustrates two ways we can approach life. We are either fencing in, or we will be fencing out. The choice is yours and yours alone. No one forces you to fence in. No one has the power to make you choose to only play defense. No matter what has happened to you, the choice is yours whether or not you will choose to advance or retreat in life. We can easily allow our past to dictate our future, especially when we are trapped by the pain or regret of it. When our past is given the freedom to control our future we become  victim to our worst experiences.

Here is the good news…Jesus came to set us free from our past, to make a way for us today, in order to be with us for eternity! We never have to live as a victim to our past. We never have to live on the defensive, simply trying to hold on to what we have. God has called you and I to advance and always be moving forward by our faith. Check out this advancing Bible verse…

Matthew 11:12 (NLT)

And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing, and violent people are attacking it.

Jesus was clear that His Kingdom has been forcefully advancing. This is a picture of God’s heart; to always be moving forward in love and grace. God wants to advance. The question is, are you living with an advancement mindset? Have you become paralyzed, or are you pursuing greater things?

You have been called by God, equipped, empowered, and endowed with the power to advance in life. As a follower of Christ, you are given the grace to move forward. Don’t be stalled by the violent people that Jesus said will attack. The Kingdom of God is alive and well within you. Don’t allow the enemy to overcome your faith in God’s promises. Jesus warned us that people will attack the Kingdom, and that means you, since the Kingdom is inside of you. Never allow others to cause you to shrink back in defeat and fence in. You have been called by God to fence out and advance His Kingdom that is at work within you. Make a difference for God by unleashing your faith in this world.