What would you trade Him for?

Today is Friday and it has been an interesting week in that putting God first has been a recurring theme that keeps popping up for me. On Sunday morning, mummy sent me a quote by Reverend Lucy Natasha that said, “A woman who walks with God will always reach her destination.” I loved it and I remember telling her as much. Later that same morning, I attended church online. The sermon was based on the first chapter of Ruth, one of my favourite stories in the Bible.

The crux of the teaching was that we’re invited to call on God and pray as Naomi from the story did regarding her two daughters-in-law and their circumstances. She was widowed as were here daughters-in-law, and they were all in a position of vulnerability. She decided to take the journey back to her homeland where she had heard the Lord had provided for His people there. As with Naomi and Ruth, when we pray and journey towards God and His providence, we will see Him provide, not only for our circumstances but for the purpose He set out for us as well.

As I listened and reflected on the sermon, I was aware that I’ve been struggling to focus on God and put Him first lately. I’ve been focused on my goals, plans, desires, challenges, Netflix, and so on. I resolved to pray about this daily, asking God to help me put Him first. In the early hours of Monday morning, I came across a post by Joyce Meyer on social media that said, “Keep God in first place, and you will end up in the right place.” I sent it to my mum saying that it affirmed what we’d spoken about the previous day which was the sermon and the quote from the morning. It also affirmed my resolve and my prayers about putting God first.

The next day, on Wednesday 15^th, I was reading my morning devotional and it spoke about putting God first once again. I got this particular devotional from mummy 10 years ago. It is called The 366 Best-Loved Verses by Solly Ozrovech. To be honest, I’d never used it up until now. I had gotten it in October of 2010 and stored it away. I probably intended to start using it in the year 2011 but forgot about it until I was decluttering this year. I say this to say that I think it was more than mere coincidence that I read that particular devotional which echoed what I was praying for on that particular morning. I see it as God acknowledging my prayer and providing a response to it for each day.

That last line where Solly Ozrovech asks, “Is there anything in this world you would trade for that?” really hit home. I found that it’s a great way to think about putting God first. What would I trade for the peace of God? The answer is absolutely nothing yet when I worry, I’m trading God’s peace in. When I am too busy to pray or spend time with God, I am trading His companionship in for whatever is holding my attention. When I try to quiet the deep longing in my soul with anything but Him, I am trading His love in. What about you? What would you trade God for? What would you give up His peace, His love, His companionship, His presence for? If the answer to that is nothing, then join me in being more intentional and diligent to not do the trade.

Love,