(Jesus said) "But seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:33
Do you feel tired today? I do.
From what I've been told, we have a right to be tired. Consider this: according to what scientists say, in the last 24 hours our hearts have beaten 103,689 times. But there's more. Our blood has traveled 168 million miles.
In the last 24 hours, we have breathed 23,040 times, inhaled 438 cubic feet of air, eaten three and a half pounds of food, spoken 4,800 words, moved 750 muscles, and exercised 7 million brain cells.
No wonder we get tired.
Still, even though we've done all those things, we can't say that any of these things have accomplished all that much -- other than keep us alive.
What I've said above was designed to make you smile. Still, I wonder how it would be to finish not just a day, but an entire life, without anything to show for the passing days, weeks, months, years, and decades.
I think it would have to be mighty depressing.
That's why, God tells us, it's important for us to keep first things first. The King James Version of today's Scripture says, "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God."
That's a good idea. If we keep God first in our lives, all the other things we do will fall into place. If we keep our loving Lord first, we will have accomplished the greatest work He has given to us.
If we keep the Savior first, then so many of our pains and problems, our sorrows and sadnesses will be put into their proper place, too.
This leads me to say, God grant we accomplish keeping Him first. If we do nothing else throughout our entire lives, God grant we accomplish this.
From a devotion originally written for "By the Way"
THE PRAYER: Dear Heavenly Father, create in me a new heart and fill it with a desire to keep You as the first and foremost Person there. Send Your Holy Spirit to remove any stumbling block and allow Him to pave the road so I may keep my focus on You. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
In Christ I remain His servant and yours,
Pastor Ken Klaus
Speaker emeritus of The Lutheran Hour®
Lutheran Hour Ministries
Today's Bible Readings: Numbers 7-8 Mark 13:21-37
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