In today's fast-paced world, in order to get any of the multitude of things on our plate done, it is necessary to prioritize, much like triaging in an emergency medicine setting. Determine what the most critical needs are and take care of them first, letting those of less importance wait till later. Multi-tasking has become a requirement for survival in our modern world. It is difficult to go anywhere on the roads and not see most of the drivers in the cars around you talking on the cell phones, eating, or digging through their briefcases. We all have so much to do... and so little time to do it... or so it seems.
This applies to just about everything in our lives, except our spirituality. When it comes to our relationship with God, and where we will spend eternity, we tend to shelve those thoughts at the bottom of our 'to do' lists. So many other things seem more important, we always think that we will have plenty of time to take care of that later on. Well, what we fail to take into consideration is that we may not have 'later on.' Every day people die on the roads simply because they are trying to take care of what they consider 'more important' while driving, and suddenly they find themselves in the great hereafter without any more opportunities to 'make things right.'
Now, as if you didn't already have enough on your plate, I come along and tell you that you need to prioritize even more. Well, your spiritual health is a more critical priority to your "life," than being triaged to the front of the line in the ER would be if you had just suffered a heart attack. These bodies we live in here on earth are all going to return to dust, but our spirit will live forever. The choices we make in this life determine where we will spend eternity.
Our time here on earth is a continual series of choices. From the small to the large, we make choices every day, that determine the course of our lives; where we live, the work we do, who we associate with, what to eat, what to wear, where to go, what to do with our time. But let us not forget that though we have an extensive scope of choices that are within our control, we are not the ultimate decision maker. GOD IS.
Deuteronomy 12:11 Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD:
Nehemiah 9:7 Thou art the LORD the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham;
Psalms 25:12 What man is he that feareth the LORD? him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose.
Psalms 47:4 He shall choose our inheritance for us, the excellency of Jacob whom he loved. Selah.
Isaiah 56:4-6 For thus saith the LORD unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant; Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off. Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the LORD, to serve him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant;
For all of our 'self-sufficient efforts'... we are only deluding ourselves that we have any real control over our destinies. We don't know if we will wake up in the morning. We don't like to think about it in this way, but God is in control of all things. That being said, God also plainly tells us what He will do if we choose to believe and/or act against His will ...
Isaiah 65:12 Therefore will I number you to the sword, and ye shall all bow down to the slaughter: because when I called, ye did not answer; when I spoke, ye did not hear; but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not.
Isaiah 66:4 I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spoke, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.
Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
Jeremiah 11:14 Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the time that they cry unto me for their trouble.
Jeremiah 14:12 When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence.
Does that sound like someone we can carelessly send to the back of the line? Do we really place such little value on the importance of our spiritual life?... that we can disregard God's commandments, that we can reject the only avenue by which man can be saved, and think that 'living it up' in this life will be worth it all in eternity?
