Priorities (First Priority)

Having focused on what I have identified as building blocks for my life, lets look at firming our foundation with the first Priority...

1. God
2. Family
3. Ministry (or Career)
4. Myself

In I Timothy 4:7, Paul admonishes Timothy to “…train yourself to be godly.” I love the way The Message version states this same verse: “Exercise daily in God…no spiritual flabbiness, please.” This requires action on our part. 

Living godly doesn't just hop onto us the moment we ask Jesus into our lives. The transformation is a result of spending time reading about Him and speaking with Him and listening for His voice. As a result we begin to take on the family resemblance of our living, loving Father both inside and out. Others will recognize it, too!

• From Psalm 119:9-11, we understand that we should (a) live according to God’s Word, (b) seek Him with all of our heart, (c) be obedient and (d) memorize scripture. It’s easier to be the women God wants for us to become when we know what He has to say. It’s already written out!

• Have you ever been in a funk? As women, hormones can be a factor in our attitude. For this reason, we should align our attitude daily with that of Christ Jesus as prompted in Philippians 2:5.

• Admit it. All of us have had times of stinkin’ thinkin’! Romans 12:2 encourages “…let God transform you by changing the way you think,” (NLT). It’s important to ask God to renew your mind on a daily basis.

• Scripture tells us “He inhabits the praise of His people.” Change up your daily devotion time and start your heart to singing with some of your favorite praise music.

• Having established Jesus as our example, we continue to follow Him in Luke 22:39 as having a regular pattern of prayer in that He “…went out as usual.” Then, a little farther into the New Testament we are instructed to devote ourselves to prayer (Colossians 4:2).

• The Holy Spirit can bring situations, people and our own weaknesses to light where we can target our prayers. GOD CAN READ! Try journaling or keeping a prayer journal. There are no rules for journaling time. It’s an excellent place to offload anxieties and frustrations where nobody gets hurt. It’s a great way to pray. It’s the perfect medium to “think in ink.” Through journaling, we can track the Spirit’s work in our lives and answers to prayer!

• Philippians 2:1-7 helps us to evaluate our motives so that each day and ministry is approached with a servant’s heart.

When we, ministry leaders, face daily stressful situations, why would you and I try to act in our strength? God wants YOU to thrive abundantly. God wants to bear YOUR burdens. God desires a closeness with YOU. When you have a hard time loving yourself, He's there and He loves YOU!

~"Sam"