Faith-bearing Seed for the Soul
"While the earth remaineth,
Seedtime and harvest
....shall not cease"

Genesis 8:22

First Things First. . .

For some, there never seems to be enough time, while others spend their days in loneliness and boredom. Could it be that for both, their timing is off? Or, is it that their priorities are mixed up? Perhaps it's a combination of both.

Eccl. 3:1,9-13 (NIV)

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: What does the worker gain from his toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for men than  to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil — this is the gift of God.

When we are frustrated, for whatever reason. . .something is not lined up with the "whole scope" of what God is doing. Our emphasis may be on the wrong things, or perhaps we are attempting to do too much. Could it be that our own desires are more important than our eternal desires? Yet, God has told us clearly that the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. Disarray in our life means that we are not enjoying the beauty that God has in our planned steps, and we may need to reevaluate, realign, and reset our priorities. This story should help you understand the need for Godly priorities, for when we DO NOT set His priorities first, they have a way of fading out of our lives, only to be replaced with frustration and discontent.

One day, an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students and, to drive home a point, used an illustration those students will never forget. As he stood in front of the group of high-powered overachievers, he said, "Okay, time for a quiz," and he pulled out a one-gallon, wide-mouth mason jar and set it on the table in front of him. He also produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, "Is this jar full?" Everyone in the class yelled, "Yes." The time management expert replied, "Really?" He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. He dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks. He then asked the group once more, "Is the jar full?" By this time the class was on to him. "Probably not," one of them answered. "Good!" he replied. He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand in the jar and it went into all of the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel. Once more he asked the question, "Is this jar full?" "No!" the class shouted. Once again he said, "Good." Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. Then he looked at the class and asked, "What is the point of this illustration?" One eager beaver raised his hand and said, "The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard you can always fit some more things in it!" "No," the speaker replied, "that's not the point. The truth that this illustration teaches us is: If you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all."

What are the "big rocks" in your life? Time with your loved ones, daily quiet time with God, prayer, reading the Word, your education, benevolent deeds... what? Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first, or you'll never get them in at all. So, tonight, or in the morning, when you are reflecting on this short story, ask God this question: Lord, what are the big rocks in my life? How can I please YOU first and foremost? How can I make my life affect eternity?

Then, put those things in your jar first! Se'lah!

Planted and rooted in Christ Jesus,

Marlene

Texas Seed Sower

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Eccl. 11:6

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