“He who lacks these things is shortsighted.” See 2 Peter 1:9 NKJV
“Today, you can do better and be better because you know better.“
My thoughts today are about “things most important.”
Many things are important in your life, but know this, not everything is of equal importance and everything cannot be important at the same time. Wisdom and success come from knowing what is best to do, and when is the best time to do so. There is a famous quote, which states that fact; “There is a tide in the affairs of men. Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries. On such a full sea are we now afloat; And we must take the current when it serves, Or lose our ventures.” William Shakespeare/Julius Caesar, Act 4. People can easily miss the tide of providence, and spend a lifetime wondering why they never got any further than they did.
One’s life can become confused all too easily. How do you accurately sort out what is truly important, more important? Education is important. Work is important. Friendship is important. Recreation is important. Money and security are important. Achievement with success is important. Marriage and family are important. Reputation is important. Salvation and a real faith are important. All are important; not all are of equal importance. “Learn to sense what is vital and prize what is excellent and of real value.” Philippians 1:9-11 Amplified Bible. Don’t be shortsighted about things that really matter. See 2 Peter 1:5-11 NKJV.
Here are guidelines that have helped me. People are more important than things. Things break and are replaceable; people are not, so be careful how you handle them. Don’t take them for granted. Invest in people for real riches. The best of things cannot cheer you when you long for friendship and companionship. The Beatles who seemed to have excessive money and fame at the height of their popularity, wrote, “Money can’t buy me love!”
Today is more important than yesterday. Yesterday has passed and is essentially unchangeable. What was done is done. Today, you can do better and be better because you know better. Why make the same mistakes again and again? Don’t waste another day in regret over yesterday. “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24 NIV. Get in the game! Now!
The eternal is more important than the temporal. Invest yourself in what endures. So much that can occupy your time and attention is just for the moment; it doesn’t last. “Those in frequent contact with the things of this world should make good use of them without becoming attached to them, for this world and all it contains will pass away.” 1 Corinthians 7:31 NLT.
Jesus told the story of a rich farmer who enjoyed success beyond his hopes. Jesus did not chide him for his great wealth and success, but rather that his success made him ignore his eternal soul. He allowed things to have an importance that blinded him to what was most important. See Luke 12:15-21 NIV. Jesus asked a probing question, “What will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” Mark 8:36-37 NKJV.
My prayer for you today is: don’t confuse the urgent with the important.