“‘But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.'” Matt 6:33 (NIV)
What is competing for “first” in your life? What gets the majority of your time, energy, and attention? Maybe you feel like you have too many plates spinning and several wobbling. Maybe you are overwhelmed with the tugs on your life and you wonder how you are going to pull it all off before each deadline.
Jesus understands the allurements and tugs of life. He had to say “no” to the wrong things so that He could say “yes” to the right things. Jesus had to say “no” to the good opportunities so that He could say “yes” to the best opportunities. Jesus had to guard His mornings so that He could have unbroken fellowship and communion with our Heavenly Father. Jesus had to strategically carve out time to simply rest and be away from the crowds and the demands on His life.
There is only so much of you to allocate. You cannot please everyone and you cannot satisfy every request. Some of your spinning plates will have to crash. The wonderful news is that God’s Will can be accomplished within the 24 hours that He has given you each day.
- “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” James 1:27 (NIV)
- “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world–the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does–comes not from the Father but from the world.” 1 John 2:15-16 (NIV)
Make room in your life for Jesus to occupy “first” place. Guard your daily intimacy with Him. Create margins in your life to foster balance. No one can do this for you. Only you can enthrone Jesus to the “first” position of prominence in your life. What adjustments do you need to make right now?
Pursuing God,
Stephen Trammell
Executive Pastor