The Freedom of Heavenly Priorities

All things are not created equal. Quite spending your life like they are. Prioritize your life accordingly.

Life will never have a chance of being fulfilling, worthwhile, or well spent if your heart is not fixed on God. This is said after years spent chasing and pursuing other things. And not just things I thought would bring me goodness.

Sometimes we neglect to recognize that, out of our misguided desires, we do not seek that which heals or fulfills, but intentionally choose to devour with our whole being that which drains life from our souls. We do so on purpose, believing we deserve punishment, that it is the way of the world, or simply that it is better to feel pain than to feel nothing at all. Do not swim in the sewers of the world.

Start and finish and fill your days by delighting in God. He is the solid rock. Always.

Follow this priority swiftly with being delighted in. The God of all creation delights in you, brimming with joy as he sings songs of celebration over you. When he seems silent, distant, harsh, this remains true: God loves and likes you.

As you settle into your love for him and his love for you, your character will inevitably be shaped into greater purity and glory. I used to think these were snobbish words, but have come to taste and see that a pure heart, one that is always subjected to the light of the Lord, is true freedom, peace, and contentment.

Answer the Lord’s calls to growth and pruning with a consistent yes and life will open up before you, though it may feel the opposite in the moment. Your life will consist of dignity and beauty and substance if you grow in godly character, and hollow worthlessness if not.

A helpful prayer in this area that has proven itself over time is, “God, for all you have done, thank you. For all you will do, yes.”

After these, people take their place in your priorities, for they are the only eternal things apart from God and his word. As C.S. Lewis beautifully states, “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal.” Treat all of God’s created humans with dignity, as they all bear God’s image.

However, that does not mean that all should receive the same priority and position in your heart and mind and soul. Spouse and children should always receive your best, the first fruits of your love and time and energy and devotion, for you are one with your spouse, and from that one comes more lives.

After that, determine who God has specifically called you to love. More than your general goodwill towards others, these people receive more conscious effort and time.

Yes, we are called generally to love our neighbor, but just as the whole world cannot live on one block, so too we can not give the full measure of our love to every human on earth. With the prioritization of some comes the de-prioritization of many. Good. You can do no good to anyone if you are attempting to do some good to everyone. Love them, pray for them, but do not give more of yourself than you should.

A brief word on toxic people. Their influence on your life should be limited, if not entirely eliminated. These are the people who choose to do violence to your heart and the world around them, and we ought to pity and love them. Most are blind to the destruction they cause, much less the pain and trauma that caused destruction in them! This does not mean we are intended to fix them all, though sometimes we may be asked to engage them more than we would like and be a part of the healing process. For the rest, pray for them and in love cast them and all of their carnage into the River of Life to be taken immediately downstream and out of sight. God will love them perfectly, even in your absence.

Disregarding the nuances of people, which I will discuss in the future, all that is left is things.

Work and create things that bring light and beauty and hope in Jesus into direct contact with the darkness of the world. Do not waste time with the hopeless and the morbid, remember what I said about sewers.

While created to work and co-create with God, our work is still a thing, and must take a position behind God and others, and one only slightly above possessions and toys. They will rot, your soul will not.

This prioritization of life leads to incredible freedoms and joys. You will live life as God intended, and you will experience the blessings he’s always intended for you to enjoy. It will shape your mind and thinking, your heart and emotions, your efforts and time, and all the while you will know greater peace because you have aligned your life with the priorities of heaven.

All things are not created equal. Quit spending your life like they are. Prioritize your life accordingly.