What Really Matters?

Wait…..What?? When I first read that statement I immediately thought, no way! This is just straight up wrong! My job matters! Taking care of my family matters! The list could go on. The more I thought about this statement and the implications of it the more I came to find that it is not just true, but that it should radically change how I spend my time and energy on this earth.
 
So most of you are probably still thinking that I am crazy. Let me set the record straight- I am NOT saying that you should leave your family and friends and join a monastery to devote your life to Christ. You shouldn’t go in to work tomorrow and quit. What you should do is re-evaluate your priorities. Take a look at your life. Where are your hours going? Where are your resources going? What is your focus? Is it getting that second or third garage stall? Are you more worried about buying that new car then growing the Church and spreading the gospel?
 
James 4:14 says, “How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog--it's here a little while, then it's gone.”
 
It is here, and then it’s gone. This life is all we have. One shot. One chance. Are you wasting it?  
 
See, we are so stuck in this temporary, singular mindset. We have a really hard time grasping even the idea of eternity. I can barely imagine a couple of months from now! However the Bible says that what we do with our lives here, on this earth, matters in eternity. I bet we wont look back on our life and regret a sacrifice we made. I bet we wont think, “oh man I wish that I had spent more time watching TV then volunteering at church”.  If anything we will regret NOT giving more time to further the kingdom of God!
 
The great news is that for the vast majority of us- life isn’t over! Yes we don’t know how much time we have left. It could be a day, a month, 20 years, or longer. What we can DO though, is spend the time we have left passionately pursuing a life of service to Christ. Stop worrying about the material things that honestly DON’T MATTER AT ALL. Start focusing on what matters; serving the church, spreading the gospel, loving your neighbor and serving Christ.
 
Prayer- Lord set our priorities on YOU. Be the center of our lives and the reason that we do anything. Give us the eternal perspective that we lack so we can truly see what matters and what doesn’t matter in this life.