Priorities

"Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it."

~Matthew 10: 37-39


Have you ever read a piece of Scripture that was hard to take in during the initial reading of it? But then as you read it again and pray about it, you begin to discern what the passage is really saying and even if it's still hard to swallow, that understanding brings you hope.

Well friends, this passage isn't one of those for me. It's one of those passages that is not only hard to take in at first, but after praying about it, I'm still in the same boat I was before. The passage hasn't somehow revealed something I didn't see before. Rather, the passage is obvious in its meaning and I am the one that has to change.

Scripture is quite clear in this passage that God must be loved more than all other things or we are not worthy of Him. Now, I think this is one of those things we all know, but do we ever take the time to really think about what that means for our everyday life? What does it mean to love God above everyone, including our family?

I'm a relational person (aren't we all?) and I love my friends and family. But as I meditate on this passage of Scripture I'm convicted over how much of myself I dedicate to working out these relationships and how little of myself is leftover for God. Leftover! I should be giving Him myself first, not what's left in the foil from last night's dinner.

I spend so much time trying to keep my relationships alive and in tact. I even pray about the ways that I can be a better friend, sister, daughter, whatever, but even when I'm having my quiet time, God gets the last part of me, if there's any left. It sounds good with 'thank yous' and 'I beseech you Gods' and any number of other phrases that make our prayers sound more relevant and worthy to be brought before our King.

But the whole time I'm missing that still, small voice whispering to me, "Love Me first and with all you have. I have done everything for you - just give me all of you in return and see what I can do with it."

Too often I forget that this life isn't about the relationships I form over the years, but rather the glory I can bring to God. We are relational to bring God glory, not to make sure we ourselves have an easier time of things while we're here. I need to give myself, my love, my devotion completely to God and what a blessing in return if there are some great people alongside me. But even if I stand alone, the Cross is before me and my God, my King, my Savior, my Lover, and my Best Friend is waiting for me with outstretched arms.