5:16 Club: Day 25, As a 5 Whatever Gal Seeking the Kingdom

This morning I reread the Scriptures we studied in small group last night -- Scriptures that keep coming my way over and over again over the past year, bringing me back to the most intensely underlined passage in my Bible, Matthew 6:25-34.

²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^a]">[a]?

²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

This familiar passage is often quoted as a pacifier to those struggling with worry or poverty, which is all I took it for until this past September. When we only look at the first portion, we miss the whole point all together. God is not telling us to not worry about the clothes we wear or food we eat simply so we can sit back and relax about life. No, it is so much more! He is stacking up evidence about His provisions, faithfulness, and Sovereignty, drawing us into a deeper relationship with Him through faith in who He is, and laying the foundation for the instruction He is most concerned with:

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be give to you as well. Matthew 6:33 NIV

If you read this passage, and heed this instruction, then head over to the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13:1-23, it brings us to place of realizing that each and every day we have opportunties before us to seek the kingdom and God's righteousness or be blown away, uprooted, and destroyed by our own desires, the work of the Enemy, and the circumstances in our lives. How are we responding to the Word? Are we seeking to understand who God is and what He is about? Do we want to see our lives changed according to His righteousness?

I'm reminded again, from reading these two passages and through reflecting on our discussion last night at small group, that the Christian life is in constant motion, constant evaluation, constant redirection. Seeking is active, not passive. We have to have our ears, eyes, mind, and heart alert and focused on Christ, looking for Him as we pursue His right ways. It also inspired me to continue this 5 Whatever Gal journey, realizing that God has answered the cry of my heart to know Him more by giving me the time to seek Him first, from the moment my eyes open every morning. When I awake each day, giving the first portion of the day to the Lord, I'm saying "You're in charge. Direct my steps. Show me your right ways. I yield. I want you and need you more than anything else!"

I pray that you, too, would join me in seeking the kingdom of God and all God's peace to permeate your heart in the most unbelievable way!

Heavenly Father, thank you for your Word. It is life and soul nourishment. Where would we be without it? Thank you, Lord, for the companionship of our sisters and brothers in Christ, who can spur us on and encourage us in the journey of life. Together, may we seek you first and cast all our worries to the cross. In Jesus' Name, Amen!

Are you ready to become a 5 whatever gal?