Seeking First Things First

A Woman After God’s Own Heart, by Elizabeth George, is a great book about priorities. Although it is directed at married women, it can also be greatly used in the life of single women. If you apply the parts about husbands to your father (and brothers in some areas), and apply the parts about children to your siblings it can be a great help! Of course some things can’t be replaced in that way, but you can use your judgement.

Many priorities are examined in this book, but I would like to share some excerpts relating to our greatest priority...

"And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:41-42).

As I thought on this word from God about one of His women—a woman Jesus was defending from criticism with this statement—I found myself looking straight into the core meaning of “a heart after God,” and I was greatly comforted.

…God’s peace became mine as I was reminded one more time that when, day by day, I choose the one thing necessary—which shall never be taken away from me—my life, too, counts. God wants my heart—all of it—and my devotion. When I choose to give it to Him, when I choose to live totally for Him, my life counts in His eyes. He wants to be Number One in my life, the priority above all priorities!

Martha failed to discern the priority and importance of time with God.

Mary, a woman after God’s own heart, made the choice that indicates a heart of devotion: She knew it was important to cease her busyness, stop all activity, and set aside secondary things in order to focus wholly on the Lord. Unlike her sister, who was so busy doing things for the Lord that she failed to spend any time with Him, Mary put worship at the top of her to-do list.

...She had learned that nothing can take the place of time in God’s presence. Indeed, time spent sitting at His feet fuels and focuses all acts of service. And, as her Master noted, time spent hearing and worshiping God can never be taken away, for it is time spent in eternal pursuits, time that earns permanent and everlasting dividends. Mary chose to spend that precious time with Him.

Because our lives are complex and demanding, we need a plan if we are to live by God’s priorities and obey His call to us. God’s order for priorities makes the day-to-day, moment-by-moment deci-sions easier and simpler. I can tell you wholeheartedly that the life-management system presented in this book works! It has brought order to my cluttered life and enabled me to see more clearly when the storms of life start to rage. God’s unchangeable Word has given me sure guidance when the tyranny of the urgent beats on my door trying to shove aside the very few really important tasks in my life-my grand duties and my chief works…

It is sure easy for priorities to get “out of whack,”...And making the choices to get back on track can sure be tough!

Is God speaking to you right now about how you are living your life? Is time with Him the first thing you seek each new day? David cried out to God in the wilderness: “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is” (Psalm 63:1).

Without a regular time with God, your Ultimate Priority, your life will be a dry and barren wilderness, and everything and everyone in it—including you—will suffer!

…Are you seeking first things first—everyday?