We live in a world that beckons us to wear our busy
schedules like badges of honor. The demands for our attention and time have
never been greater. We are an
over-committed culture that finds social status through our frenzied pace.
However, God’s Word clearly states that this isn’t to be so.
Image courtesy of Jose Martin, via Unsplash
I have sat with a group of fifth grade girls in my living
room for a Bible study and listened to an echoed prayer request for “time
management.”
Time management. For an eleven-year-old.
Our oldest son recently filled out a college application
that required him to create a resume for submission. I fought against the inner
voice that wanted to scream an explanation for why my teenager didn’t list
activity after activity after activity. Deep within me, I felt the need to
defend our choice to guard our calendars and his childhood carefully.
When it comes to the rhythm of an abundant life that God intends
for us, we can look to the example of the early church. The Bible is clear that abundance in our lives has nothing to do with an over-packed calendar.
Paul tells us that “they gave themselves
first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will,” (2 Corinthians
8:5, NIV).
These early believers understood the priority of guarding
how they gave away their time, energy, and focus in order to fulfill the will
of God.
As Paul addressed the Corinthian church, he commends them
for giving themselves FIRST to the Lord, and then only as was in accordance
with his will. In other words, they were living out the command of Matthew 6:33,
which tells us to “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all
these things will be given as well.”
These Biblical instructions beg of us to do some serious
self-evaluation when it comes to the pace with which we live. We are to take
time to ask hard questions.
Are you seeking his kingdom FIRST? Is time with God first in
priority? Is God’s command for generosity and tithing upheld in your finances?
Are you living in such a way that you can keep God first in your heart,
thoughts, words, and actions? Is his will sought first when evaluating the time
commitments and choices you make for yourself and your family?
Here is a truth to hold to for every one of us. Our Good
Father has some instructions for us in how we live our lives. We are to quit
giving ourselves away to culture, people, selfish desires, our own glory and
fame, and the enemy’s lies.
We need to identify the distractions that are stealing our
attention and therein, also our lives.
We must do some difficult soul searching. We must ask what
is taking priority in our calendar, our pocket book, our thought life, and our
very souls.
These distractions or places where we are giving ourselves
away are actually idols. We cannot rationalize it away. When we give our time
and attention to so many other things that God only gets the left-overs, we
have an issue with idols. God clearly instructs us to deal with our idols and allow
him to create an undivided heart within us. Like the Psalmist, we are to cry
out, “Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an
undivided heart, that I may fear your name,” (Psalm 86:11).
This pursuit to give ourselves away to the Lord first is a
lifelong wrestling match. It’s a day by day process. It’s something we must
rise up every day and choose to battle, pressing ourselves toward faithfulness.
And it starts with creating rhythms in our day to turn our
focus to God first.
This undivided pursuit of God demands a resolve to get back
up every time we fall short. It demands that we keep going in the grace of God,
learning to rest at our Savior’s feet, and coming back to him when we stray.
As busy people who are seeking to chase God, we will do well
to consider what is consuming our time, attention, and energy because it
dictates where we are actually giving ourselves away. God calls us to rest in
his grace and cease our striving.
His desire for us to sit long at his feet and give ourselves
to him first, trusting him to handle the rest of our burdens and to order our
days to his glory.
Amen and amen. Let’s learn to still ourselves and be intentional
in how we use up the resource of this precious life that we’ve been given.
