Seeking His Kingdom (Part 2)

Published by christi on January 31, 2019January 31, 2019

Seek first  His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these will be yours as well.  

-Matthew 6:33

Thanks to countless church services and Bible studies (and my personal study), I have a lot of really great ideas about God, but my own functional thoughts about Him, how I relate to Him, are not always so great. They tend to reflect the conclusions I have drawn based on my experiences.

I used to think that seeking God first meant putting His name in the top two slots of my day-timer.  Sadly, this has often resulted in those early-morning “chats” being about as intimate as a business-meeting: little more than updates and assignment of duties, requisitions and allocations.(These are no more fulfilling for Him than they are for me!)  I gather up my spreadsheets and go off… alone…to do what I can…

Lately I have been learning that seeking His kingdom first involves more than just keeping my daily “quiet time” at the top of the order. It includes having the interests of my King and His domain:

-ahead of or preceding all others in rank and order;

-a matter of primary importance in all decision-making;

-a foundational principle of all I think and do;

-predominant above all other voices that influence my thinking;

-preeminent in every arena of my life.

All these are what the word first means in the language of the New Testament:  “the first day of the week,” the “first commandment,” “the last shall be first,” and “first born.” So…if my thoughts about anything argue with what God says, or occupy a higher priority in decision-making than His, these renegades must be taken prisoner and made to bow in obedience to Jesus…whether they are about relatives or revelation, groceries or grandchildren, menu-plans or lesson-plans!

Little by little, I am bringing my thoughts into agreement with His, and with every change my eyes are opened to more of the ways He has lovingly provided for me.

(I still keep my morning appointment with Him, but more of them are like coffee with a friend!)

Christi

P.S. If you have questions about what it means to take our thoughts captive, please leave a comment. I would love to chat about it with you.

PLUS: The February song goes live tomorrow!  I would love to have you listen!