Priority One

Priority One

Matthew 6:33

Exodus 20:106

2Samueal 11:1-5

Introduction-

This morning I want to talk to you about priorities. I realize that we are all different and have many different things that are important to us.

I am here to tell you there are some priorities that have to be first in our lives or your life is going to be in a tailspin.

Have you ever thought to yourself that your life was out of control, overwhelming, and you thought “what did I do to deserve this? Or what should I have done to prevent this from getting where it is at? Yeah, we all have.

What did you come up with for answers?

If your answer ended with- it is all about me…

If it ended that it was somebody else’s fault…

If it ended with you just need a break, waiting till you win the lottery, the chances are you are still there. Out of control, overwhelmed and still begging for answers.

Right priorities = life fulfillment (repeat)

Our perspective of life, our priorities in life, and our personal choices will determine much of your life. It will determine how we live.

We began a new study last Wednesday looking at balancing life’s demands.

Lesson one was priority. Got me thinking as we only scratched the surface and will look at it again this Wednesday.

Life is like a fountain that spills out into every area of our lives.

GOD

SPOUSE

FAMILY

WORK

MINISTRY

Everything flows from our relationship with God. When God is not first, things get messy and our priorities begin to cause us problems in our life.

God has given us some life verses. These are verses to guide us and to keep our lives balanced correctly with God being first.

Old Testament

Exodus 20- 10 Commandments

#1 Commandment-

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You should have no gods before me. You should not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath, or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them. For I the Lord your God am a jealous God.”

New Testament

Matthew 6:33-

“But seek first his kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

Our perspective is God first

Our priority is to keep Him first in our lives.

Our personal choices are based upon Him being first

Everyone of us wants our lives to turn out good.

Everyone of us wants our life to have significance.

Everyone of us wants their life to matter to someone.

If you don’t your priorities are wrong!

Solomon spent 11 chapters rejecting everything that most people try to find fulfillment in today.

Money

Pleasure

Power

Fame

Sex

Jobs

So how do you do that? Keep God first.

Be determined and be intentional that He will be first in all you do. Good times and bad.

Everytime you realize that that He is not first- you make the necessary changes quickly.

Watch over your heart with all diligence.

You make sure that you are in daily communication with the Lord.

You never become so busy that God has to make an appointment to see you or talk with you.

Dwight Eisenhower

“The urgent is rarely important and the important is rarely urgent.”

Prioritize your life, time, money, relationships. God is first and he is allowed to help keep the rest in order.

We cannot do this without God’s help.

There is nothing we can do for God’s kingdom without the Holy Spirit working in us. (repeat)

The worship team has a saying they have used for a long time. I am not sure who started using it. I looked it up on the internet and found several ways of saying it, so I don’t know who to give credit too. It goes like this- “Your lack of planning does not constitute an emergency on my part.”

Makes sense right? There are many people that make bad choices or make no choice and then when they are up against the wall, they present to you as an emergency as if now to be your priority.

“The urgent is rarely important and the important is rarely urgent.”

There is peace with prioritizing our lives. Amen.

There is guidance and power available when God is put first in our lives. Amen.

Can we make mistakes? Yes.

Can God help us? Yes.

Can God forgive us when we have blown it? Yes He can.

But priorities and personal choices are based upon God being first in our lives.

I want you to understand that when God is not first, we make ourselves vulnerable to things that we would think “only other people do”