Your last resort?

What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.  (Matthew 5:32-33) 

I saw something on Facebook some time back that simply read:  "Make God your first priority...not your last resort". Short and sweet, but quite accurate.  "Seek first the kingdom of God..."  It is easy to get caught up in the busy-ness of seeking all kinds of bargains in life, but are they really 'bargains' at all? I use this passage this morning because it really captures well what I feel in my heart right now.  Sometimes we think the gift WE give or the talent WE bring is meant to fulfill the desires of the hearts of someone other than God.  In reality, only ONE gift really fulfills the heart - Christ and Christ alone - only one is truly blessed when we give or use our talent - God.

God is desperately trying to get you to relax - to not be so preoccupied as you go through life!  Don't miss it - God is focused on getting us to a position of not being "preoccupied".  Do you know what this really means?  It means to be so completely engrossed in some pursuit, manner of thought, or task that you are "absorbed" by it.  No wonder we cannot relax!  I need to address a couple of areas on my carpet in the workroom where something has been "absorbed" into the fibers of the carpet. I have "worked" these areas before, but something has obviously been so deeply "absorbed" - worked into the fibers so as to resist the initial scrubbing I have done.  Think about how much we "absorb" of the stuff around us, sometimes not even noticing how much of the "stuff" is being worked into the fibers of our lives.  Now, chew on that one a little.

Fussing or 'worrying' over stuff in life is really a sign of unbelief.  Jesus said it - "People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things..."  He had just given a lengthy explanation to the disciples about not being so caught up in what the latest style is, who should sit at the head of the table, or what you should fill your bellies with.  Instead, they were to be concerned with where they placed their real treasure.  "The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being."  We all have to learn to relax "into" Jesus.  I think of this as what it is like to be so close to another, really free to just melt into their embrace and just "chill" there for a while.  God's greatest delight is in our "chilling" moments in his full embrace.

It is time to get the right focus and keep it.  "Steeping our lives IN God-reality, God-initiative, and God-provisions."  What happens when we pour boiling water over a tea bag? The process of "steeping" begins.  The tea bag is soaking in what it is surrounded by, and in turn the little leaves inside begin to soften, releasing the richness of their bounty and beauty. I think we are often "steeping" in the stuff which just gets soaked up and then "taints" what is released.  What we surround ourselves with is most important in determining what will be released from the "steeping". Keep perspective as you journey on through this troubling time.  Don't get caught up in the frenzy.  Enjoy the relaxation of resting in God's embrace.  You might actually find yourself getting something very "rich" from the experience.  Just sayin!