Therefore take no
thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal
shall we be clothed?
32 (For after all
these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye
have need of all these things.
33 But seek ye first
the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added
unto you.
I don’t talk about it as much as I used to, but when I was a
young man I played the game of football. And although my enthusiasm for the
game has dwindled in recent years, I am still a fan. Over the years, I learned
to appreciate the many strategies and the hard work that goes into winning
games. One of the most exciting moments in any game is when your favorite team
needs a touchdown to win and they have the ball within inches of the goal line.
It’s fourth and goal, the game is on the line, and time is running out.
There is no time to fool around, nothing fancy, no trick
plays; just snap the ball and drive the ball across the goal line - especially
if you have Marshawn Lynch in the backfield. I have watched the Seahawks win
many games in that final “no nonsense” drive down the field and after the game
I always wonder to myself, “Why don’t they play the whole game the way they
played that last minute?”
It makes me think of Parkinson’s Law: - “Activity expands to
fill the allotted time.”
Funny isn’t it, when you consider that time is the only
truly nonrenewable resource on the planet?
Now fast forward to the return of Jesus or to the end of
your life. Now it is fourth and goal and eternity hangs in the balance. Will you
able to look back satisfied that you sought the Kingdom of God as hard as you could?
Are you pleased with the intensity with which you have driven for His
righteousness at this point in your life?
At that moment, what do you think you will wish you had
spent more time doing?
Do you think you will wished that you had spent more time
seeking His Kingdom first?
How much time have you really invested in the seeking the
Kingdom of God? We don’t seem to have trouble finding time to watch football, go
to the mall, hunt, or the many other recreational activities that we enjoy, but
when was the last time you set aside an afternoon to pray and study God’s Word?
Don’t tune me out yet, much of this today is coming out of conviction not
judgement.
Per a recent report from a survey of American Christians
only forty-two percent knew who delivered the “Sermon on the Mount.” Only
forty-eight percent could name the first 4 books of the New Testament. Of the
more than 1300 surveyed, less than 1%, said that their lives were truly and
directly changed by what the Bible said. In other words, lots of people are
reading it, but very few are allowing it to create change.
Are you seeking first the Kingdom of God and His
righteousness to the point of real change? Are you being transformed, as the
Apostle Paul wrote, by the renewing of your mind? Have you been set free from
the cares and concerns of this life, because your mind is focused on eternal
life?
I have recently discovered that Matthew 6:33 was given to us
so that everything in our lives would be good. I believe that Jesus gave us the
key to real happiness in this life. I am convinced that if we are truly seeking
the Kingdom of God and His righteousness with the intensity that Jesus
commanded, above all other things – first, then everything else in our life will
be bearable.
I have prayer’s that I pray every single day along with the
personal prayers that I lift to God for others. I pray them every day. One of
them is the “Serenity Prayer.”
“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot
change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the
difference. Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time, accepting
hardship as a pathway to peace, taking, as Jesus did, this sinful world as it
is, not as I would have it, trusting that You will make all things right, if I
surrender to Your will, so that I may be reasonably happy in this life, and
supremely happy with You forever in the next. Amen.”
I am not saying that if we truly seek His Kingdom and
righteousness that our lives will be perfect. That would be a lie and no one
would believe me anyway. What I am saying is that if we focus more on what He
desires for us, and less on what we want for ourselves we can be happy,
reasonably happy in this life and eternally happy in the next life with Him.
When we remove everything that hinders us and fix our eyes
on Jesus we can be like Joseph who could have a palace praise from a pit and a
prison cell. We can be like Job who even though he lost everything he had, was
able to proclaim, “though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.”
We can dance in the fire, rest amongst lions, face down a
giant, and rejoice in persecution feeling worthy to have suffered for His name.
If we are making the most of our time here by seeking Jesus first, when it is
fourth and goal in our lives, there will be no doubt – we will reach the goal for
which God has called us heavenward.
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