Priorities

I don't know about you, but if I had a dollard for everytime I was lectured about priorities, I would have enough money to pay for college and grad school. In every area of life, it seems as though adults are constantly concerned with my ability to put the important things first, the only problem being that each advisor has a different suggestion about what should be at the top of my list. Chart toppers range from school, family, and even putting myself first to ensure happiness. All of these answers to me are rather ignorant. It seems to me that the obvious choice would be placing God above everything, not only because he is the creator of all that comes after him, but also because he holds the future of our lives, and if we allow him to take the drivers seat, following him at all costs, the other areas of our life could only flourish. For anyone who has attended church before, I'm sure this is not really a new concept.

Although it is hard to succeed in making God the top priority in life all the time, I know many who daily seek to find that success, and it is those who I am now speaking to. How do you prioritize aspects of your faith? What is it that you desire from God? For me, over the past six or seven months, it has been his signs, wonders, and miracles that have captivated my heart and filled my prayers. This desire is not always an easy one to have, and in the past month or so, has really become a burden on my heart. I have been frustrated and even confused, throwing tempertantrums and questioning God as to why I am not seeing the heavenly culture I desperately want to see. Although it has been difficult, I thought my hunger for the supernatural was right on track until yesterday when I was reading a blog posted by the Ramp (a powerful ministry in Hamilton, Alabama). In this blog, one of the members of their ministry team shared that her desire, and her current priority was simply getting to know God, and presented the scripture from Matthew  “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons, and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, evildoers’”. Jesus was saying that it is not supernatural experiences and actions that give our faith validity, but simply the act of knowing him. This really got me thinking. How was it that I could beg God for signs, wonders, and miracles without truly knowing him? How is it that daily I was pleading with God to fufill the desires of my heart, without knowing the desires of his?

It is through my learning experience that I say this. We have got to reprioritize. Although, in our generation, it is hard to turn down an invite from our friends to hang out and decide to hang out with God instead, it is neccissary to our relationship with him. Although it is hard to put down the homework and study God's word before studying for a life-threatening exam, it is neccissary to obtain the wisdom to carry out his will. Although it is hard to stare into the face of the non-believing parent that you love and say "I'm going to church" and possibly disappoint them, it is absolutely neccissary to please Abba Father who we could never truly disappoint . God has to be first.

Once he is first, we then have to prioritize what is important in our walk with him. This is where I struggled, and I believe I am not alone. As a generation we thirive on entertainment, and that characteristic translates to our faith with God. We become so consumed by the wow factor that comes when something supernatural happens and how our faith is built by that event, we forget that the only way our faith can truly grow is by knowing the fullness of God. We have got to make knowing him the top priority. Instead of spending hours begging to see what he can do, as if he had to prove himself, we need to spend hours begging him to reveal to us his heart. We need to read his word, and learn of his promises and power. We need to have conversations with him, and listen to what he tells us. We need to allow ourselves to be vulnerable and crawl into his lap, and let him love on us. While doing this is not the easiest, we can never see the byproduct we desire without knowing where it came from. So I urge you, make knowing the fullness of God more important to you than life, and see what happens. I don't know what will happen, seeing as I'm walking right beside you on this one, but I bet you'll find that knowing him is so much sweeter than anything else, and what he can do will become just an added bonus. One thing I do know is that we must try or risk grieving God to a level that we could never know. After all, how would you feel if someone did not care about knowing who you were, but still wanted to use you for what you had to offer them?