Priorities... or lack thereof

I know in life that my priorities should be:
1. God
2. People
3. Things
...in that order. Often, however, it feels like the perverse reverse is more reflective of what my life is about. Help me daddy!

The heart of the matter...

Back in May, I heard Wayne Grudem speaking on Proverbs 4:23.

I stumbled across a note I wrote in my filofax when listening to him back then:

"Heart is like a musical instrument, bump it and it goes all out of tune."

We have a piano in our house. Unlike the quote above, she* has not been moved, and has still gone badly out of tune! :-(

If my life is to be like beautiful music to my creator and redeemer, Jesus Christ, and if it is to be a benefit to others, then guarding my heart from the evil desires that live within me and seek to bash it about is of paramount importance.

I may not be able to have any control on things going on around me in the world, but with God's help, I will learn to master my internal world and be a wellspring of life to all those to whom God has given me.

*Should any feminists be reading, I make no apologies for the use of what you might call patronising patriarchal personification ;-)

On eating meat when the stakes are high...

Spotted this article in the newspaper in the staffroom whilst I was rummaging for articles for my A-level class. It's hard trying to get boys to have opinions on more than just football, girls and alcohol!

Embracing a way of life in the gospel that has poverty and deferred gratification as its inspiration is not something that comes naturally to me.  Exchanging my burgers and bacon for beans, lentils and pulses is, in all honesty, not something I intend to do in a hurry.

But the truth is that the way we have been living in the West is not only unsustainable, it's also unfair and unloving.  And that is something I cannot ignore.

Whilst I'm no eco-warrior-tree-hugging-protesting-by-handcuffing-myself-to-a-bulldozer kind of guy, Jesus' and Paul's words are making me think long and hard on the subject.

PS  To avoid this becoming just another vain blog post, PLEASE watch this space... and more importantly, my example for evidence of any real change and take me to task if need be!

Courage

What follows was inspired by a spin-off thought I had, whilst listening to the bible being read at my church meeting this morning. We were reading Joshua 1:5-8.

The Lord commands Joshua to be strong and courageous when leading the people into conquering the land of Canaan, but when he commands Joshua to lead the people in obeying the Law, (The written down words of God.) he tells him to be strong and very courageous...

I have often, on the surface of things, fancied myself as a Braveheart like figure, but in truth, I feel quite weak and queasy at the thought of slaughtering a lamb for lunch, let alone charging into battle, sword in hand, trying to avoid being sliced by an enemy sword and simultaneously thrusting my own into as many enemy bodies as possible.

But military courage, hard as it is, is not the greatest battle requiring the greatest courage.

The greatest battle requiring the greatest strength and courage is that of being faithful to obey all of the words that God has spoken. Spiritual courage, the courage of obedience and faith requires the greatest resolve and therefore the greatest help. That is why, to those who look to Jesus and the Holy Spirit to help them persevere and overcome in this life, God will give the greatest reward in the next life. Not a temporary one, but an eternal one.

It won't be the military heroes who are welcomed into Heaven, but rather the ramshackle bunch of individuals who have, for better or worse, richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, lovingly obeyed, even unto death, the One who loved them first and gave his life for them.

Fighting for your Life...

When I first saw this picture, it reminded me of this verse .
Anyway, that's not the point of this rumination. The rumination is this. Science defines life as consciousness - being awake and having the capacity to respond to your surroundings. However, Jesus said that real life is not about consciousness but about having a friendship with him and God the Father.
If that is true then, I fight for life everyday, because everyday I have to choose to spend time cultivating friendship with the Living God. It doesn't happen naturally. Everything in me wants to serve sin - my own selfish desires. Those desires must be fought and fought not just today, but day after day after day after day after day... Victory in self-discipline today is no assurance of victory tomorrow (although it does help).
Even if I manage to set the time aside, I still have to make sure I listen and talk to him and not just let my mind wander off into oceans of worry or banality. That's hard, especially in a week when I am beginning the slow process of rewriting all the files from my stolen laptop.
So how is your fight for life going? Are you solid as a rock or as a bowl of jelly? As we fight for life, let us encourage our hearts together in this, that God is the rewarder of those who seek him.