Priorities

So the last blog post talked about margins and trying to maintain a healthy balance in life here at RVA.  I (Jim) was already feeling a little bit convicted about my time management or, more accurately, convicted about my priorities.  Really, the things which consume my spare moments begin to consume the hours which consume my days, my weeks... my life.  Safe to say, the things which consume my life at the moment are probably the things that an honest appraisal of my thoughts would reveal as my priorities.   Not that this is a new lesson by any means but one I'm re-learning.  It was this lesson my thoughts were focused on at the beginning of the week.

The other thing I never seem to learn is that when God is speaking, I should listen - because when I don't listen, He speaks the same thing over and over and over again until I begin to catch on.  On Thursday, we had a chapel speaker who shared reflections on the political and spiritual situation in the Northern part of the continent.  The content was fascinating, but the lesson which grabbed my full attention?  I get one life.

Then, on Sunday, Brock Mathison shared with us the story of William Borden, which you should watch on youtube.  He then spoke on Philippians 3:7-11 

"But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead."

Whatever things were gain to me, I count as rubbish?  So that I may gain Christ?  Last week, it began with stress, feeling overwhelmed, having too much on our plates and ended with time to re-center, re-focus on priorities that really matter:  Serving kids at RVA? Certainly. My family? Absolutely.

'I count ALL things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.'

Serving kids at RVA a loss? Apparently.  My family? I guess so; compared to Christ.  It's easy to say, but the real priorities, those that consume my days, my weeks, my life?  They speak otherwise!  I can not Gain Christ so He can be found on the margins of MY page, my ministry or my family.  My priority must be: Gain Christ, and be found in Him.

I get ONE life.