PUTTING FIRST THINGS FIRST
(Saturday, November 18)
“And another also said, ‘Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.’” (Lk 9:61-62)
What are some of the good things we set out to do, but then, “looking back” for allegedly good reasons, (like saying a proper Goodbye to the someone or something), put off the good thing? Here are some examples: We cut off an unhealthy relationship, realizing we need to move forward, but then we think to ourselves – you know what, I should text him/her or give them a call, *just* to make sure he or she is okay. (Note that the word “just” in thoughts like that is a warning sign about a lie or wishful thinking.) Or we stop drinking for some time because we needed to do that, and then we think, One last drink wouldn’t hurt… And then we might find ourselves in a worse situation than before. Or we might have embraced a new daily prayer or fasting routine, say, for the Nativity Fast, and a few days in, we start getting caught up in business-as-usual and think, I will get back to the prayer and fasting routine after I get this project done…
Let me let myself put First Things first, this morning, and take care of my spiritual and physical health. Let me pray a bit; let me tidy up my place a bit and prepare some healthy food; let me journal a bit about my pluses and minuses before You, and let me flex my gratitude-muscles so they don’t atrophy, before I take a brief walk to exercise my other muscles. Because all the other things do fall into place, sometimes quickly and sometimes slowly, when I do that. Let me take pause and take up the dignifying challenge of responding to God’s call to me, to seek His kingdom and inhabit it, already in my today. Thy kingdom come, O Lord, into my day this Saturday, and thank You for always having it on offer.
