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But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things
shall be added to you. Matthew 6:33

Do you ever struggle with priorities? Do you let the things in life that really aren’t very important crowd out the things in life that really are very important?

It is interesting to me that when people are on their death bed, they never talk about how they wished they had worked harder, made more sales calls, closed more business deals, climbed higher on the ladder of success. No. What they talk about is relationships. They wish they had lived more for the Lord. they wished they had spent more time with their family and friends.

A SUCCESS OR A FAILURE?

Years ago, I ran across this true story of a “successful” father who lost sight of what was really important.

A young man was to be sentenced to the penitentiary. The judge had known him from childhood, for he was well acquainted with his father–a famous legal scholar and the author of an exhaustive study entitled, “The Law of Trusts.” “Do you remember your father?” asked the magistrate. “I remember him well, your honor,” came the reply. Then trying to probe the offender’s conscience, the judge said, “As you are about to be sentenced and as you think of your wonderful dad, what do you remember most clearly about him?” There was a pause. Then the judge received an answer he had not expected. “I remember when I went to him for advice. He looked up at me from the book he was writing and said, ‘Run along, boy; I’m busy!’ When I went to him for companionship, he turned me away, saying, ‘Run along, son; this book must be finished!’ Your honor, you remember him as a great lawyer. I remember him as a lost friend.” The magistrate muttered to himself, “Alas! Finished the book, but lost the boy!”

REWRITING YOUR STORY

Be totally honest: are you falling into the same trap of that “successful” lawyer dad? Are you trading the eternal things, the things that really matter, for the temporal things that are destined for the ash heap? The time is now to take a sober inventory of the direction of your life. What do you see? Does the picture need some work?

It is not too late to turn things around! Start first by seeking the Lord and His will for your life. Then focus you thoughts and attention on family and friends. Life is more than just deadlines, “to do” lists, work, work and more work. Life is meant to be savored and enjoyed. God wants to use your life today to bless others, starting with your own family. Take time for God, time for worship, prayer, and Bible study. and time for those special people He has put into your life. May it never be metaphorically said of you that you “finished the book but lost the boy.”

by Jeff Schreve

When doubts filled my mind,
your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.

Psalm 94:19 (New Living Translation)

When anxiety was great within me,
your consolation brought joy to my soul.

Psalm 94:19 (New International Version)

When I was upset and beside myself,
you calmed me down and cheered me up.

Psalm 94:19 (The Message)

God is our refuge and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble.
So we will not fear when earthquakes come
and the mountains crumble into the sea.

Psalm 46:1-2 (New Living Translation)

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea.

Psalm 46:1-2 (New International Version)

God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need him.
We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom,
courageous in seastorm and earthquake,
Before the rush and roar of oceans,
the tremors that shift mountains.

Psalm 46:1-2 (The Message)

Form your purpose by asking for counsel,
then carry it out using all the help you can get.

Proverbs 20:18 (The Message)

Make plans by seeking advice;
if you wage war, obtain guidance.

Proverbs 20:18 (New International Version)

Plans succeed through good counsel;
don’t go to war without wise advice.

Proverbs 20:18 (New Living Translation)

If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?

1 John 3:17 (New Living Translation)

If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?

1 John 3:17 (New International Version)

If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God’s love? It disappears. And you made it disappear.

1 John 3:17 (The Message)

Better to be criticized by a wise person
than to be praised by a fool.

Ecclesiastes 7:5 (New Living Translation)

It is better to heed a wise man’s rebuke
than to listen to the song of fools.

Ecclesiastes 7:5 (New International Version)

You’ll get more from the rebuke of a sage
Than from the song and dance of fools.

Ecclesiastes 7:5 (The Message)

Life is tough enough as it is. It’s even tougher when we’re headed in the wrong direction.

One of the incredible abilities of Jesus was to stay on target. His life never got off track. Not once do we find him walking down the wrong side of the fairway. He had no money, no computers, no jets, no administrative assistants or staff; yet Jesus did what many of us fail to do. He kept his life on course.

As Jesus looked across the horizon of his future, he could see many targets. Many flags were flapping in the wind, each of which he could have pursued. He could have been a political revolutionary. He could have been a national leader. He could have been content to be a teacher and educate minds or to be a physician and heal bodies. But in the end he chose to be a Savior and save souls.

Anyone near Christ for any length of time heard it from Jesus himself. “The Son of Man came to find lost people and save them” (Luke 19:10). “The Son of Man did not come to be served. He came to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many people” (Mark 10:45).

The heart of Christ was relentlessly focused on one task. The day he left the carpentry shop of Nazareth he had one ultimate aim—the cross of Calvary. He was so focused that his final words were, “It is finished” (John 19:30).

How could Jesus say he was finished? There were still the hungry to feed, the sick to heal, the untaught to instruct, and the unloved to love. How could he say he was finished? Simple. He had completed his designated task. His commission was fulfilled. The painter could set aside his brush, the sculptor lay down his chisel, the writer put away his pen. The job was done.

Wouldn’t you love to be able to say the same? Wouldn’t you love to look back on your life and know you had done what you were called to do?

by Max Lucado