Busy

I have read Haggai today and business is what God showed me. I am busy, I work I take care of my house and yard and watch my grandsons and do so many other things that I am always busy. I am faithful to church and I do work at events and functions but I also see so many things that need to be done at the church and don’t have time to do them. This entire book is about the people being about their own homes and wants and needs and God’s house still in ruins. How many times have I been there? As I set here and ask God to build the American church I see this very thing. God told the remnant of Israel that because they neglected doing the work to restore His temple that he would bring a famine and that they would work harder for less. How is that for history repeating itself?  Americans are busy, I live in a fast passed time where everyone works more, plays less, and is guilty for not doing the things they feel are more important, so where is that taking me? I have been a single mother since I was a teenager and I have dealt with all of those issues but have never had any idea how to change it. Most days it is all I can do to keep my head above water. So what if all this time my priorities have been in the wrong place and the more I work the harder it gets? I’m not even sure I can get my mind around that statement, it is definitely not something that would have been said in my house growing up, nor would I have said it to my own sons. I believe I take care of the things I love and find time for the people I love so in all honesty God gets my left overs and so does the body I belong to. Sure I throw some money in the pot to pay someone to clean, do yard work and maintenance but I would never do that at my house. I love my home and family and I enjoy taking care of them even when I am tired. I say all that because today God is again showing me some deeper issues in the hearts of His people when it comes to revival. Is busy just an excuse to say no? I’m not on a guilt trip right now and I’m not going to quit my job and just clean and mow grass at the church but what if God really is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow, what if work is harder for less because I spend all my effort on getting more things to put in the closet? Throughout this journey God has been trying to teach me to learn from history and to stop repeating the same mistakes hoping for a different outcome, so have I put God on a shelf and just take Him out when I need something big I can’t get for myself? I am convicted today not to put more work on myself but to get my priorities in the right order. The Bible says: “love the Lord thy God with all your heart soul and mind” “seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you” “the joy of the Lord is my strength” Haggai’s prophecy to the remnant of Israel was simply the more you spend all your time worrying only about your own homes and wealth the harder it is going to be to keep it. God wants and is deserving of my love and devotion above all things, because without Him I have nothing. I need to spend some time and reevaluate what is and is not important, who truly comes first and who should, but mostly am I just busy for the things that will not last.