Reality Check!

What do you spend most of your free time doing?

What ‘thing’ in your life gets the most attention?

Who does your heart truly belong to?

Where does your mind go when it wanders?

What hobbies consume your time?

What are the desires of your heart?

Who do you serve?

Look back over these questions again. Be completely honest with yourself.

We live in a society that is busier than ever.  Life is non-stop.  I often have trouble sleeping at night simply because that to-do list that is ahead for the next day overwhelms me.  How will I get it all done?  It is very easy to become consumed by the busy-ness of life and it’s demands.  But once we have managed to take care of all the ‘gotta get it dones’…..things such as work, keeping your home in order (yes, you DO actually NEED clean clothes), helping the kids with their homework….. What takes over?

For many, hobbies consume our time.  Hunting, fishing, shopping, sports, crafting…. the list can go on and on.

For others, it’s activities our kids are involved in.  Or if you are a kid, activities YOU are involved in.   Dance.  Music lessons.  Cheer.  Football.  Basketball.  Band. Softball.  Raising animals for Ag.  Baseball.  Twirling.  Track.  The list goes on and on and on.

We pour ourselves into these things passionately.  And they aren’t bad things.  We want to be the best…..we want our kids to be the best, so we pour our time and energy into getting them to every practice, getting them equipped with training camps and equipment, practicing at home between games/events.  Whatever it takes to help get a win.  Success, victory will be ours!  Um, I mean, theirs!

But the Bible tells us very clearly, we cannot serve two masters.  We cannot devote ourselves to two masters.  And although there are many, many good quality things available to fill our time, I can’t help but wonder, do these extras…..become our master?

The answer lies in our priorities.  Is your first priority to God?  Or is He placed on the back burner during ball season?  Is your utmost concern on your spiritual condition or the spiritual condition of your children?  Or are you more concerned over winning the next game?  Making the next practice?  Do you simply know and believe God or do you experience a real relationship with Him?  When faced with the reality of choosing church over these things, what do you choose?  How often do you skip out on church because you are tired and exhausted from pouring yourself into these extras??

So often we wonder why things don’t go right in our lives.  We question where God is when trials come our way.  Where are all those blessings He promises when our lives are unraveling?  Yet, we often have not given Him full reign in our daily lives.  We want His blessings.  We pray for Him to pour them into our lives.  We cry out to Him when our lives fall apart for help.  Yet, we neglect our relationship with Him.  In fact, so many times, we practically have no relationship with Him at all.  We try to get up and go to church, but we neglect to walk with Him through prayer, reading our Bible, and simply spending time with Him during our week.  We claim to be His, yet we neglect to be obedient to Him in even the smallest things.  We want Him there when we need Him.  To swoop in and rescue us.  But we aren’t willing to devote ourselves to Him.

Sometimes we need a good reality check.  Take inventory of what’s important in life.  God doesn’t want halfway Christians.  He wants you devoted to Him.  Following Him first.  Before ALL other things. He wants you to experience Him daily.  Not just to know Him, but to love Him.  Live for Him.  The greatest happiness you will ever find is in learning to balance what’s important in life and devoting yourself to Him first.

 

No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.  — Matthew 6:24