Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33)
Everyone in the world has the exact same number of hours in a week—168. So how do we explain the difference in the production level of the high achievers? The answer is found in a single word: priorities. It has been well said that “If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time.” What have you been aiming at lately? And is your goal in line with God’s plan and purpose for your life?
For the Christian, the order of priorities is not something we need to ponder or even pray about. The Scriptures make it perfectly clear what our priorities are to be in life. If you are married, loving your spouse is a high priority. If you are a parent, nurturing your children is a high priority. If you are working, working for the glory of God and the good of others is a high priority. But regardless of our circumstances, we are children of God, first and foremost, and our highest priority in life is Jesus.
We see our Lord’s words in our verse for today, that we are to be seeking God first in life. When we do that, we can rest assured that all the other priorities in life will fall into place . . . but only when God is seated upon the throne of our lives. When we allow anything to displace God from the throne of our lives, we set ourselves up for failure. We may be putting in lots of hours and working with a disciplined effort, but the results will always be less than God’s best for our lives, because we are seeking less than God’s best.
The apostle Paul helps us recognize the importance of making the most of the time God has given to us: “Do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for our salvation is nearer than when we first believed” (Romans 13:11).
Remember this powerful precept: When you spend an hour, you have one less hour to spend . . . so spend it wisely. Who would argue against this truth? The less time there is in life, the more valuable it becomes. As Paul said, we are closer to our salvation than we were when we first believed. We are nearing the Jordan; soon we shall cross it and enter into our Promised Land. But before we do, let us take the time to evaluate our priorities and make sure we have them in the right order: God first and everything else after Him.
This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!
Grace for the Race 