Priorities | John 4:34

I posted this a few days ago on Facebook, but I thought I'd post it on here as well.
 

"My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work." (John 4:34 NIV)

Wow. How powerful a statement this is. Jesus' food--his source of nourishment and his key to survival--was doing the will of God. Just think how awesome things would be if Christians today had this mentality. What if we were as excited about God as we were about that juicy steak we're gonna have for dinner. What if we relied more on God than food to get the nourishment and fulfillment we need. What if we became more dependent on God to satisfy our hunger. What if we placed more of an emphasis on God instead of what our next meal will be. You wouldn't dream of skipping a meal, so why do we constantly put God on the back burner. Doing God's will is more vital to our existence than the food we eat. We must make doing God's will a priority over everything else we have going on in our life.

Things of This World | Food for Thought

Sex.  Alcohol.  Drugs.  Everywhere you turn, the world is throwing another one of its attacks.  Throwing them so hard that you just might be knocked off your feet and fall into the pit of temptation.  Throwing them so fast that you might not even see it coming.  You might not even realize what's happening.  And suddenly, before you know it, you're buried ten feet deep, trapped in a web of the world's lies.  Lies of love, hope, riches, and prosperity.  Lies that are so appealing that you just keep getting drawn in deeper and deeper, until it seems that there is no way out.  You have no place to turn to, nowhere to run.  You're blinded by your worldly desires.  You don't realize how deep you're buried in this mess.  You can't see how far you've strayed from the straight and narrow path.  You may have been raised in a Christian home, but suddenly all of that has been thrown out the window.  You have freedom now.  And while your parents are good, God-fearing Christians, that won't do anything for you.  You can't get to Heaven on their salvation.  It has to be your decision.  This is YOUR eternal life we're talking about.  It's up to YOU.  And you think, "Oh, I can wait til I'm older to follow Christ.  I just need to party and live it up while I'm young, and when I grow up, maybe then I'll follow God again."  No.  It doesn't work that way.  No one is promised tomorrow.  You may never get that chance to turn things around.  What are you so afraid of losing anyway?  Do you really think that God would make you give something up without replacing it with something a hundred times better?  Something better than you ever could've imagined or accomplished on your own?  But no, you can't see that.  You're covered in the filth of the world, and you can't see how simple it all really is.  All you have to do is reach out.  There's a hand waiting to grab you and pick you up out of that hole that you're so deep in.  A hand waiting to give you a brand new life.  A hand waiting to bless you beyond your imagination.  A hand yearning for you.  Longing to have a relationship with you.  Longing for you to turn your life over to Him.  But He's not gonna beg.  He's not gonna force you to choose Him.  He sent His only Son to die for you.  He loves you.  But He can't make this choice for you either.  You must reach out to Him.  But the second you step out in faith, He's right there to meet you.  He won't let you fall.  Don't you see?  The world has done nothing but bury you in their lies.  The world has abandoned you.  The world won't help you out of this hole.  But God will.  Although you may have abandoned Him, He hasn't abandoned you.  He will never leave you or forsake you.  He'll be that friend who's still there even after everyone else has turned their backs on you.  He will never let you down.  You'll never have to walk through those tough times alone.  All He wants is for you to want Him.  He's everything you could ever need and more.  Can't you see that?  Can't you see that He is so much more than anything this world has to offer?  All you have to do is reach out.  Turn to Him.  Run to Him.  He'll pick you up, wash all that filth off of you, and give you a brand new life.  All you have to do is ask.  It's as simple as that.  Just ask.  His answer will be, "Yes!"  You have nothing to lose when you turn to Him, but you have everything to gain.

"For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"
--Mark 8:36 KJV