My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead. Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. [Philippians 3:10–14]

Hey, everyone. It’s Kathy again.

Goals can be funny things. On one hand, I love goals. They give me something to work toward, something to look forward to, something that gives me purpose and drive. And yet—goals come with their own pitfalls as well. So often, I find myself having reached a goal, whether it’s a certain number of books I wanted to read or a certain time I wanted to run or a certain task I wanted to complete, and then saying, “Now what?” Once we reach the goal, what happens next? Is there a new goal? A harder one? A more important one?

The Apostle Paul alludes to this constant goal-seeking that we as humans (and especially as believers) can fall prey to. He clearly outlines his goal (“to know [Christ] and the power of his resurrection”) and his process for reaching said goal (a willingness to die for his faith as Jesus did), but Paul also acknowledges that he doesn’t actually ever expect to meet his goal. Meeting the goal isn’t the point, it turns out. But striving, working, making every effort to take hold of the goal is what allows us as Christ-followers to focus on what it means to seek after Christ each day and be content in relishing the journey, not just the destination.

Goals can give us something to reach for that’s far off in the distance. But in the wise words of C.S. Lewis (who else?), “There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” Paul said it himself: Forget what’s behind, what’s past, what kept us from reaching forward—and pursue the promise instead.

For your reading accompaniment
Trinity’s worship arts team is about to introduce this song on Sunday (although if you were at our Summer Nights worship event in June, you got a sneak peek!), and it’s a good reminder that God is in the midst of every battle we face as we seek to become more like his Son.

Make that seven, actually
In the world of marathon running, becoming a Six Star Finisher is kind of a big deal. It means you’ve completed the six World Major Marathons: Boston, Chicago, Tokyo, London, Berlin, and New York City. While lottery drawings happen for five of the six races (all but Boston), many have to work hard to get a BQ (Boston-qualifying) time before they can earn all six stars and receive the coveted Six Star Finisher medal.

But wait, there’s more! One more, in fact. The Sydney Marathon joins the ranks this August to become the seventh World Major Marathon. Those who have already snagged their Six Star medal might have a new goal race in sight. Personally, I’d be up for a trip to Sydney, but I’ve heard that 24-hour flight time is rough—and shakeout runs on airplanes are probably frowned upon.

On the bookshelves
I just finished: With a Vengeance by Riley Sager

Fans of Agatha Christie and the like might find the newest Riley Sager mystery to be right up their alley. With a Vengeance combines the setting of Murder on the Orient Express with the basic premise of And Then There Were None and gives a story that keeps a snappy pace (they’re on a train, after all) but still leaves the reader guessing. I finished the audiobook this morning and when I got to the big reveal (no spoilers here), my mouth literally dropped open like a codfish because I just didn’t see it coming.

I’m currently reading: One L by Scott Turow (and others)

A friend of mine who teaches law in Virginia recommended One L to me as I get ready to enter my first year of law school this fall. Written by a graduate of Harvard Law School and based on the journals he kept as a student there, it’s a realistic (albeit slightly dated) look at what the nitty-gritty, day-in-and-day-out work of a law student looks like. I’m also slowly slogging my way through Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time and Neil deGrasse Tyson’s Astrophysics for People in a Hurry, because as much as I love physics and want to learn more, I’m still just a girl who barely scraped by with a C+ in Physics 112.

I’m excited about: The Woman in Suite 11 by Ruth Ware

Ware’s newest release (coming next week) is a follow-up to her 2017 bestseller The Woman in Cabin 10. While that wasn’t my favorite of Ware’s thrillers, I’m still looking forward to reading about Lo Blacklock’s next adventure in the high-stakes travel journalism arena. And since you asked, my favorite Ruth Ware novel is The Death of Mrs. Westaway, which is a creepy, suspenseful, Gothic-toned tale of a twisted family and its cruel matriarch. Five stars, no notes.

And my husband’s pick: Mark Twain by Ron Chernow

Doug does not share my love for fiction (he’ll watch the movie instead), but he is partial to a well-written biography. I am pretty sure he’s read Ron Chernow’s entire back catalogue, but I got him Mark Twain, Chernow’s newest release, for his birthday in May. This profile of one of the most beloved American authors will probably take an age to get through, but just like the tomes from Chernow dedicated to Grant and Hamilton, it’s sure to be a worthwhile read.

Happy Birthday, APOD!
Astronomy Picture of the Day celebrated its thirtieth birthday a couple weeks ago with a special image made up of over 1,800 individual photographs that have been contributed to APOD over the last five years. You might recognize the picture…

Speaking of space…
No Apollo program content, I promise! This recommendation is a little more fictional but a whole lot of fun. Project Hail Mary was written by Andy Weir back in 2022 and is being turned into a movie starring Ryan Gosling. Gosling plays Ryland Grace, an American astronaut who wakes up from a coma to find himself alone in a spacecraft, lightyears from Earth and on a desperate mission to save his home planet. I won’t say anything else about it right now because it would basically spoil the whole story, but seriously—if you are a reader at all, please consider listening to this book on audiobook. It’s absolutely amazing. I listened to the majority of it with my children and they still talk about it now, months after we finished.

The audiobook is available exclusively on Audible, but it’s well worth the time spent listening (and there are lots of promotional codes out there to get a free month or so on Audible). I wouldn’t even watch the movie trailer if you’re going to read the book because it spoils it a bit—although I do think they did a great job creating the Hail Mary spacecraft (Space Ken’s mojo dojo casa house, if you will).

Happy Fourth, Trinity
In honor of this week’s Independence Day celebrations, please join me in watching the greatest Fourth of July movie moment in history. I will accept no criticism of my choice. 😊

“You are the way, the truth, the life
Without the way there is no going
Without the truth there is no knowing
Without the life there is no growing
Show us the way, that we may go
Teach us the truth, that we may know
Grant us the life, that we may grow
Eternally.”
[Rev. Theodore J. (Ted) Tracy, S.J., b. 1916]