Who or What is Your First?

Firsts....Wow this word has so many expectations attached to it, doesn't it? As we begin our journey into the New Year, we come into the First of the Month with many expectations and hopes to change something about our lives to make it better than the previous year; but is all the emphasis placed in proper order?

Think about it, as infants our parents go bananas over First Steps we took. As a child, we want to be First at nearly everything: first one with the newest, hottest toys - first with a new outfit that is in style, first to get our driver's licenses amongst our friends. We dream of getting our first boyfriend/girlfriend, a first kiss, etc....so much emphasis is placed on being First!

Our Nation celebrated being the First to land a man on the moon; there are First Ladies, First throws at a baseball game...First Base. The list goes on and on...but, on the contrary; God gets overlooked and placed very low on the priorities most hold for their lives.

We cannot expect a life full of blessings without first recognizing the source of all blessings! The very first, FIRST is the Alpha and Omega. Before anything or anyone existed, God did and will long after everything and everyone is gone. So, imagine how life may be different for all of us, if we put ourselves last and God FIRST... It's one of the rare things He asks of us; and in doing so, He promises:

"Seek FIRST the Kingdom of God and all His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." - Matthew 6:33

As we focus on making God FIRST, we no longer need to worry about anything. He will provide whatever answer you are seeking, so long as it is HIS Will when you simply SEEK Him FIRST. I don't know about you, but I've certainly tried things my own way for way too long and got nowhere. Yet, every time I've let God lead my life completely - nothing but good has come out of it. Will you join me today in seeking HIM first in everything? Will you turn everything over to His control and let Him be First with the time He allows you to have? Will you make Him your First priority each week and gather with the Body of Christ to offer Him your praise and thanksgiving? Will you trust Him with the car, child, spouse, boyfriend/girlfriend, groceries, etc....

** Today's blog was inspired by the Message Series, "Firsts" from LifeChurch.tv  - You can watch this Message Series all week long at http://live.lifechurch.tv/times **

Thanks for reading! I look forward to doing Life with you through out the year and hearing how God is speaking into your life throughout 2011.

Heart Check

It's been said, that we are the Church. Not the building we may assemble on each Sunday Morning or Saturday Night, but us - you, me, your Pastor/Priest, neighbor, best friend...we are the Church! I'm not sure what image that strikes up in your mind as you meditate on that, or if your mind can even begin to wrap around the depths of what it really entails; but, I'm challenging both myself and anyone who may be reading this, to take to heart what being the church really means.

Recently, a fellow LifeGroup member pointed out a certain members need that was intended to be a request for others to just pray for her situation. She has been feeling a calling from God to go on a year long mission to Africa, and would be living on a ship the better part of a year and serving in the local communities near where the ship would dock temporarily. Long story short, it was mentioned, that with the amount of members that post or were part of the group page in one way or another; that if each member, just pitched in $20 a week for just 8 weeks - collectively, we as a group could provide this members financial assistance to do what God is calling her to do for an entire year.

That really struck a chord in my heart and got me thinking about what God's Word says about who  the Church is, and just exactly, what we are called to do as "the Church." And what we are to do, is to care for the needs of one another - be it with time, money, assistance in completing a task that is too overwhelming for the one needing help to do alone, etc....we are not called to go through life alone; looking only after our own well being. Because, in all honesty, ALL good things come from God alone. Yes, you may have good health, a great job, an awesome family etc...but at any moment, God can chose to strip you of those very things you pridefully call "yours."

We are not our own - we were paid for when Jesus chose to lay down His life on the Cross for us. He paid a debt He didn't owe, to allow for a pardon that we could have never earned. Jesus' sacrafice on that Cross allowed us to have eternal life with God upon our exiting from this earth, and not one of us know the day our number will get pulled. So, instead of wasting the resources that God has allowed us to possess and focussing so much on what we can acquire in this life - may we all let God speak directly to our hearts, and show us opportunities and people that our resources can help and leave a legacy behind for future generations to follow.

So, in closing - when's the last time you had a heart check from God? Close your eyes, drift back to a time of life when things were simpler - when you had less stuff to preoccupy you, and were instead, rich on relationships with others. It felt much better, wouldn't you agree? Will you join with me, in making 2011 a year of being more Others focussed? Will you commit to asking God to show you opportunities to bless others in need, regardless of what resource it is that He prompts you to give? Will you watch less TV, and instead, reach more lives in your community and around the globe?

Let me hear your comments, prayers, concerns. I look forward to truly doing LIFE with you and for you in 2011. Our time is never guaranteed, let's make it count for Christ and Community!