Priorities that honor God
Matthew 6:33, 1 Corinthians 10:31, Ephesians 5:15-17
Phillipians 3:13-14, Colossians 3:2-3, Revelation 2:4
Priorities are those things you intentionally decide are most important in your life. You probably spend a significant amount of your time and your money on your priorities. They are things that matter most to you. The bible instructs you to set godly priorities and then live by them. Christians should order their lives after the things God says are dear to His heart instead of things offered and emphasized by this world. Establishing kingdom priorities ivolves recognizing God's agenda and then carrying out His agenda.
How to establish Godly priorities
Prayer provides the relationship with God through which you will hear His heart and see His priorities. There are 3 important choices that will enable you to establish Godly priorities for your life.
1) Be most interested in the things of God rather than in the things of this world.
The Apostle Paul established Godly priorities, writing " But this one thing I do... I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." (Phillipians 3: 13-14) Your primary interests directly affect your central focus. Rest assured the devil and his accomplises will make every effort to move your focus away from God's primary activity and desires for your life.When the minds of believers are on things other than God's priorities, we are distracted and become an easy grooup on which the devil can work. Therefore it is very important to understand and be alert to kingdom issues so that we are not vulnerable to satan's deception. Make no mistake about this: your primary interests determine your focus. Whatever or whomever you love, will motivate you. The more you get to know God, the more you will love Him. And the more you love Him, the more you will be motivated toward kingdom-centered prayers rather than self-centered prayers.Kingdom issues will become more of a priority in your prayers when they become more of a priority in your thoughts. So you must make a conscious effort to bring your thoughts and your desires to the point where kingdom issues take absolute priority over evrything else. Paul said it plainly, "Set your affection on things above, not on things of the eart." (Colossians 3:2)
Some suggestions for Kingdom Thinking
a) Read slowly and prayerfully through the parables, noting the primary lesson Jesus taught in each.
b) Believe by faith, that when you are right with God, all that God can do for you will be done. (Matthew 6:33)
c) Honestly answer this question as you review your life: Will it matter to the kingdom of God that I lived.?
d) Place more emphasis in your prayer time on matters of eternal importance rather than on matters of temporal importance.
e) Ask yourself; How can I be at work to establish the kingdom of God where I am?
f) Learn everything you can about, pray for, and ask God to show you where you can become involved in missionary and evangelistic work.
g) Identify the areas of your life that are in special need of the Lord's rule and authority.
h) If your life on earth ended tonight, would you be able to saywhat Jesus said: "I have glorified thee on earth: I have finished the work thou gavest me to do" (John 17:4)
i) Give careful thought as to how you can be certain it is God who receives the glory in everything you do.
2) Take the right cues
Charles F. Hummel explains how easy it is to take our cues from what seems urgent instead of from what is actually important. "Here is the secret of Jesus' life and work for God. He prayerfully waited for His Father's instructions and for the strength to follow them. Jesus had no devinely-drawn blueprint; He discerned the Father's will day by day in a life of prayer. By this means He warded off the urgent and accomplished the important."
Be aware that wrong cues may also emerge from your own reasoning (Proverbs 3:5)says:" Lean not unto your own understanding", the secular media, urgent phone calls or e-mails, and at times, well-intentioned friends and family. The best cues for recognizing and establishing Godly priorities have always been a life of prayer, obedience to the Holy Spirit and the study of the Word of God. Pray that the Holy Spirit will supernaturally enable and empower you to establish His desires in your life.
3) Carefully study the high priority of prayer in the life of our Lord
Jesus.
Our Lord didn't pray simply to instruct or to set an example for everyone. (John 5:19-20) From this passage we learn that there is an intimate relationship the Father had with His Son. It is a relationship He wants to have with you because He loves you so deeply. Through a prayer-centered relationship, your heavenly Father wants to reveal to you what He is doing and how you can join Him in what He is doing. This close relationship through which God's priorities are revealedcome about when kingdom-focused prayer becomes priority, as it was in the life of our Lord. Before He began His earthly ministry, before He chose His disciples, before He taught the multitudes, before He healed people, before He performed miracles, at every major crisis, before He died on the cross- Jesus prayed. Prayer was a necessity. Prayer was His life. And He continues in prayer. (Hebrews 7: 25)
He made it clear that prayer is the great factor in the spreading of His gospel. The most defining statement in scripture regarding the prayer life of Jesus is found in (Hebrews 5:7) " Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto Him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared." Praise God for hearing the prayers of our Lord Jesus, and for hearing our prayers when we are rightly come before Him!
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