Order of Priorities

2 Thess.3:1-5

...pray for us, that the word of the Lord may spread quickly 

and be held in honor, just as it was with you.

  2And pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men;

 for not everyone holds to the faith.

  3But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen you 

and guard you from the evil one.a 

4And we have confidence in the Lord that you are doing 

and will continue to do what we command. 

5May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.

***

Day breaks; responsibility rouses mankind from slumber’s cot...

I began this poem last Saturday, as I juggled demands

where 'cares (and duties) of this world tug and weigh'...

On Monday I stayed with my (ever-growing-frailer) mother-in-law as she listened

to the funeral message as another of her dear friends

was laid to rest; a 93 yr. old mother of 13! 

(side note; my mother-in-law will turn 93, if the Lord wills, on Aug.2)

During the funeral service

one of the ministers shared a story he read about a farmer

who was building a new milk house.

When the building inspector asked to see his permit he confessed that he forgot to get one.

The Inspector asked him if he remembered to order gravel. 'yes' said the farmer.

And cement? again, the farmer answered yes. And did you remember to

line up help for this project, the inspector pressed.

Yes, said the farmer once more.

 Then the inspector said to him,

Now I know, you did not forget to get a building permit.

You just didn't deem it important!

The minister was seeking to impress on the listener

the importance of recognizing what is truly important and preparing for it; 

preparing the Soul to meet God is life's most dire urgency

for no one knows when 'dust-to-dust’s mandate will appease'

all earthly priorities.

What is important to us we remember!

What is important to us takes its place in our order of priorities!

Below, a few beautiful paragraphs from the book

George Muller of Bristol 

The order of priorities is sometimes hard to reconcile

So many tasks of ‘me first, please’, where weeds abound and flowers smile

Where happiness and heartache meet and mingle in the human breast

Where weariness and work compete and put will power to the test

Where souls to tend and bills to pay keep us on our knees and toes

Where cares of this world tug and weigh and what yet waits God only knows

The order of priorities reveals the hierarchy within

Where a most sacred diocese exists beneath our cloak of skin

No matter who or where we are, God sees the hearts of you and me

Where who we worship sets the bar for what will take priority

And, holy is the consequence of what is just as it appears

As precedence yields evidence by what Priority reveres

Day breaks; responsibility rouses mankind from slumber’s cot

Where instantly Priority beckons in the throne-room of Thought

Oh Lord, how great Thou art; oh, guard us from the evil one today

Let Thy word in our minds and hearts equip us to trust and obey

Before this boon of beckoning, dust-to-dust’s mandate will appease

And then will be the reckoning for order of priorities

© Janet Martin

2 Pet.1:3-9

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness

 through the knowledge of Him who called us by His owna glory and excellence. 

4Through these He has given us His precious and magnificent promises,

 so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature,

 now that you have escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

5For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue;

 and to virtue, knowledge;

  6and to knowledge, self-control; 

and to self-control, perseverance; 

and to perseverance, godliness;

  7and to godliness, brotherly kindness; 

and to brotherly kindness, love.

  8For if you possess these qualities and continue to grow in them, 

they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive

 in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

9But whoever lacks these traits is nearsighted to the point of blindness, 

having forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.

Galatians 6:10
As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, 

especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

Yesterday I spent a while tackling

 'where weeds were abounding!

(and flowers smiling!)