INTRODUCTION
As fathers and husbands, there is always something to do. And even if you get to doing everything, there always remains that simple aspect of spending time with your family.
In fact things get so busy sometimes for all of us, that we often loose track of where or sometimes even who we are.
I was blessed this week to take a little bit of time off. I wont go into the reasons but needless to say I was walking like a cowboy. But we digress. I was blessed this week to have a little time off and I got to take a look at a few things that were going on in my life.
Now one thing you can not be if you are in Gods work is bored or without anything to do. Often Pastors burn out and become exhausted. And I got to do some prioritizing this week. I got to think through a few things
I did all the usual stuff, not that it’s not important, you know, must spend more time with Leanne, need to be busier with the Kids. Etc etc.
But there was still an unsettled feeling of “It’s not on your to do list”.
Ever had that feeling? I am almost put at ease by simply having a priority list. Sometimes I don’t get through everything on the list, but by simply just having a list, it kind of makes you feel better.
But after I had given some thought to some of my priorities, I was still left feeling like something had been left off the list.
And so I did what I do when I feel a gap, I prayed. And before I had got through my usual Father I come before you….first line, I realized that I had a few things to sort of as to priorities with God. I relaised that I had been rectifying and listing all the priorities in my life, but that my lifes very business had crowded out some of the core elements that I needed to have in place with God.
I realized that business for the kingdom, crowds out the kingdoms business within.
I needed to make a few changes in my faith and in my service to my God.
FIRST COUNT THE COST
The very first scripture that came to mind was that of:
Luke 14:28
Who does not FIRST. I had to get some FIRST things right FIRST.
I had to get some Godly priorities correct FIRST, before I went on to pursue other.
SUNDAY = FIRST DAY = GOOD TO CONSIDER FIRSTS (PRIORITIES)
Today being Sunday is the first day of the week on most calendars. And so today by coming along to church we gave the first day of the time we have this week to God. And so being the first day of the week, and being one that we have used to focus some time on God, it would be a good day to look at some of FIRSTS or some of our priorities. But not just any priorities, but rather our divine must do’s.
GLOBAL DIVINE PRIORITY
In some businesses, despite having many priorities, there is a company mission statement. There is an overriding global priority that governs all things.
Mt 6:33 – gives us our mission statement or our global priority.
Mt 6:33 Unpack
No better priority can we have other than that of Gods kingdom. We pray for it everytime we utter the Our father prayer. BUT DO WE NEED IT. IS IT THE HEADER OF OUR TO DO LIST?
Whatever I am looking to do, let me do Kingdom first, and then all other things will be added to you.
OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS – STARTS AT HOME
Righteousness is not about anything on the outside. Its not about a thing we can do. Its not about how many cell groups we attend or how many feeding programs we can be running or involved with, its about our insides. Its about the Kingdom working is goodness, it righteousness in us.
Mat 23:26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
Don’t be doing stuff, if the stuff inside has not been sorted out. I often say that you cant mess with a genuine story. Well genuineness begins in here. Genuineness is about getting your house in order. Its about making sure your home is a righteous and Godly place, its about getting the base things sorted out.
You can’t expect to be anything more than who God made you to be. So get right that which he has made and stop trying to make yourself something not even your divine creator wanted you to be.
1 Pet 4:17 admonishes that righteousness begins at home. It begins here in the church. You wont convert others if your righteousness is not secured.
WHERE DOES YOU AFFECTION LIE?
Are you passionate about something – Doug and I share very different passions. But we share a similar frustration. Doug loves to sail, and I love my golf. But the frustration is that we get to do it so rarely that it sometimes feels like its not a passion.
Your affection makes you passionate. But today I want to ask are you passionate about your God.
Does every ounce of your being beat to our heavenly fathers pulse?
Matthew 22:37,38 – Our all – no part of us should be distracted from God.
No part of us should not be screaming praise to our DAD.
Nothing else should get in the way of the divine God we serve. Not hobbies, not Rugby, not work, nothing. Our all.
That scripture denotes our all.
YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHERS.
I have been settling in here. I must admit I have been holding back sometimes, but I want to say that when it comes with our relationships with others, we need to turn up the heat.
We need to stop writing the idea of having good relationships with our brothers and sister at Riversong down on a to do list and start having the relationships and start swallowing some of our pride.
SCRIPTURE RE RELATIONSHIPS – GIFT AND DUST AND PROCESS
Stop coming along in a sense of righteousness when you have a problem with your brother or sister in the church. God can not engage with you if you are carrying that matter.
GIFT
Matthew 5:24 is very direct about this. Your sacrifice can not be accepted by God is you are not reconciled with your brother.
When Jesus went about teaching his disciples the business of the kingdom he taught them a valuable lesson about dealing with our brothers and sisters.
DUST
In Mt 10:14 he tells them that if they come across someone who does not agree with them, “brush the dust of your feet.”
He is not meaning that we simply shrug it off and say, well we don’t care, we don’t give a damn, no he is saying don’t hold a grudge. Don’t go carrying around the mud on your shoes of grudge bearing, Carry to much of that and you will become so caked in mud you will not be able to walk.
PROCESS
On top of that, Jesus says you must sort out issues that you have with fellows in the congregation.
In Matthew 18 – Jesus outlines the process we should follow if a brother has wronged us. He not only said go sort out your issues, don’t carry a grudge, but he also gave us a process we can follow to handle disputes.
No where in that scripture does it say we need to chat about it with others. No where in that scripture does it say we need to gossip about it. No where in that process does it say we should let everyone else no about it before we have spoken to our brother.
Look around you. Tomorrow you may be called to give your life for your brother and sister. In the time of the end we will face difficulty, look around you and start accepting that these are the faces that will carry you, love you and keep you.
Stop finding fault, stop bickering and let us love each other.
JUDGING OTHERS
(John 8:7 KJV) So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.
(Mat 7:5 KJV) Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
We only judge in others what we cant get right in ourselves.
Judging others is the easiest thing in the world to do. Categorising people or sitting in company and being very evident in your judgement of others is something that we can do so easily.
Jesus hates it. Jesus gets riled by it. Jesus can not stand it. This morning loose it, Drop it and the peace and love that Jesus does desire will fill its place.
YOUR CHURCH ATTENDANCE.
I was speaking to someone just last night, and I said – well tommorows Sunday, the best day of the week.
Some of you who have journeyed with me and have invited me in to bring the word into some of the situations you are in, will know that I love my brothers and sisters. You are my family – I can not wait to be with you on a Sunday – I can not wait to serve you. You ask Kevin what his favorite day of the week is and I know he will tell you Sunday.
Can you imagine going a whole week without seeing your family here at church. Don’t neglect coming to celebrate with your brothers and sisters.
I now that if we lived in the time of Christ, I would have journeyed for miles to see him. I can see him every time I see my family at church. We are his body. If I need to sense his love, I come to you, if I want to receive His advice, I come to you.
Be the body, do not, as scripture admonishes us, neglect the gathering of ourselves together.
YOUR THINKING AND DOING
(2 Cor 8:12 KJV) For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.
Keep your mind and thoughts open for the Holy Spirit. B e keen to hear from him. Do not be filling your thoughts with every other thing.
Stand by your thoughts with fruit. Action.
If you Stand for nothing, you will fall for anything
YOUR PRAYER LIFE
(1 Tim 2:1 KJV) I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
When God puts you on hold - Don’t hang up!
ABOUT THE NEXT LIFE.
(Rev 20:6 KJV) Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
Generation Heaven Bound!
Conclusion
Be sure to get the FIRST things FIRST. Priorities as regards other things will never come to fruition if we do not get the priorities of Kingdom right first. Mt 6:33 spells it out, it says that we have to prioritise the kingdom AND THE all the other things will be added to us.
