But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:33 ESV)
Do you feel that you seek God above all else? Do you consider Him to be your ‘first love’?
The word ‘seek’ is an action word. We are to actively pursue God, His will, and His plans for our lives more than anything else.
When my husband, Bruce, and I were preparing to be wed, we were like many other couples in that time in life. We spent countless hours talking about the future…our hopes, our dreams, our goals AND developing a plan to see those things realized in our life together.
In the years since then we have occasionally reflected on the thoughts and feelings we had in those days. We are profoundly grateful that our heavenly Father had worked in our hearts, and continues to do so today, to inspire us to seek Him first in our lives.
In 1994, when we stood before God and many of our loved ones, and vowed to take each other for better or for worse, we had no idea how our lives would change over the years. We’ve known the sting of unfulfilled hopes and dreams, numerous health “curve balls”, employment changes, etc. We’ve also known more love, laughter and contentment than we would have ever considered possible.
The one thing that has never changed, or failed us, is God’s love and faithfulness. Through the highs and lows of sharing everyday life with another person, God has been there. We continue to ask that God’s will be done in all things in our lives. Many things happen that we don’t understand and truthfully, don’t like at the time. However, we’ve become thankful that God knows what’s best for us, even when we can’t see it.
We’ve learned to trust Him. Those years ago, we started out with “mustard seed” sized faith, but He has taken that faith and grown it in leaps and bounds. We’ve grown to appreciate Romans 8:28 (ESV) which says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
As we have sought to keep God in first place in our lives, it has definitely been true that we haven’t always gotten what we wanted. But, God has always been faithful to giving us exactly what we need.
Romans 6:25-31 speaks of some things that we can be anxious about, such as our basic life needs; food, clothes, etc. Today’s Scripture reminds us that we don’t need to strive for anything. All God asks of us is that He be in first place in our lives. When that happens, He is able to take care of our needs in ways that will surprise and bless us. Sometimes unfair things happen in our lives, but God is greater than any obstacle we may encounter. Matthew 7:7-11 ESV says it well, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”
Even when we are trying our best we can make wrong choices, but God sees and knows our hearts. When we are honestly seeking Him first, we will be blessed to see He is more faithful to us than we are to Him. He never makes mistakes. If you get it wrong sometimes, God is always waiting for you to find Him. Your willingness to repent makes it possible for Him to act on your behalf and move in your circumstances.
My prayer is, “Heavenly Father, please forgive me for the times that I have given someone or something first place in my life before you. Please help me to stay in faith that you will provide everything I need. Thank you for your never-ending faithfulness to me. In Jesus’ Name, AMEN.
