First

Ouch!!

Do you ever come across a truth so plainly spoken that it is like having the wind knocked out of you?

What a generation you turned out to be!
    Didn’t I tell you? Didn’t I warn you?
Have I let you down, Israel?
    Am I nothing but a dead-end street?
Why do my people say, ‘Good riddance!
    From now on we’re on our own’?
Young women don’t forget their jewelry, do they?
    Brides don’t show up without their veils, do they?
But my people forget me.
    Day after day after day they never give me a thought.

Jeremiiah 2:31-32 The Message

Wow.

Day after day after day they never give me a thought.

That is like asking people "Did you forget to check your email today?" Crazy right!?!  No one forgets to check their email!!

Does the irony hit you as hard as it hits me?

An iPhone might get more attention than the King of the Universe!?!  And I thought that people back in the day were pathetic for worshiping rock or wooden images that they cut with their own hands...

I can feel the heat of shame rise as I read this.

Eugene Peterson in Run With The Horses: A Quest For Life At It's Best writes:


"In Jeremiah it is clear that excellence comes from a life of faith, from being more interested in God than in self, and has almost nothing to do with comfort or esteem or achievement."

Excellence comes from a life of faith, from being more interested in God than in self...

Again!! This quote sucker punched me.

I have been reflecting on this and what it means in my life for weeks.

Am I more interested in God than I am in myself?

I have a heavy feeling inside that this is not as much a reality in my life as I want it to be. I feel the heat of shame rise again...

What does the way I spend my time, effort, money and thought life reveal?

What does it mean to be more interested in God than I am in myself? How does my life reflect this?

I want my interest in God before myself  to define me. At the end of my days, this is what I want to be known for. This is it for me. My hearts desire.

I want it so badly it hurts and I am struck with the faithlessness of my own human nature. How easily distracted and self seeking I am.  I may not go days without thinking of God, but does my life reveal that He comes first? First in everything!?

Does God come before my personal comfort?

Am I more concerned about God than I am with achievement?

Alright, so none of us is perfect. There is always room for improvement. We can always work towards this.

So what does it look like to become more and more interested in God than in myself? How does He increasingly become my focus? How do I pursue Him above my own comfort & selfishness?

This will look a little the same and a little different for each of us.

I think looking at how we spend our time, money, and thought life is a good place to begin.

Is God taking up more and more of these things?

1.  When I wake up, my first thoughts will be of God.  I used my bible at my bedside to be a visual reminder to do this.
2. He will get the first fruits of my earnings.
3.  Before I check my messages or phone, I pray, or meditate on a scripture I am memorizing.
4.  When I go to bed at night I will reflect on my day to see where God was at work. I like the guidelines in Rummaging for God.

I love the song "First" by Lauren Daigle. It summarizes this pursuit of God simply and elegantly.

I use it to keep myself on track. I hope it spurs you onward also.

I will seek God first.