Priorities!

And, I'm back. It's been awhile. I have been...what's the word...busy. Busy, busy busy. Funny how it creeps into our vocabulary, making excuses for what we don't do. Oh, was I reminded of that this week.

One of my absolutely favorite blogs Back to Her Roots talked this week about the bare necessities, and other than the fact that The Jungle Book is one of my favorite disney movies, the post really challenged me. She talked about how for her, when life gets BUSY, exercise is one of the first things to go. Which is ironic because exercise helps her to recalibrate and de-stress. Through another woman's blog (I love how we all inspire each other), she realized that exercise is a necessity, as necessary as breathing, sleeping, eating, etc. You should go read her blog. Like now. Or at least save it and read it when you're done here :) I loved this quote:

"The truth is not that I’m lazy. The truth is that as important and empowering as exercise is to me at times, in my mind, it was never vital. A fun thing to do, but easily tossed aside if something better came along.
Now that I recognize my views toward exercise, I can start changing them. I’m not sure what my plan of attack will be. After all, how do you change your outlook? But I at least know where I am and where I want to go to. I know I need to view exercise as a vital part of my life."

I am so with her on this, and not just on exercise and eating responsibly. Yesterday I went to church and Richard ever so gently and eloquently gave my mind a little shake talking about this same exact thing--priorities-the bare necessities. He talked about the kingdom, and how everyone's idea of the kingdom was so different...and so wrong. Jesus' kingdom makes the least, greatest. It changes everything. It causes our priorities to change and it asks us to live differently.

 I've been living life, and adding Jesus on. I've been seeking my priorities and the things I want, and saying "oh yea, Jesus fits in there somewhere." But in the meantime my values have been muddled-even in my own head sometimes. The things that I was passionate about, my beliefs, my faith, have taken a second seat to the kingdom that I created. My own little world in which I seek what I want, desire, and feel like I need. Instead of putting his priorities for my life first, I'm making my own.

So where do I go from here? Repentance. It means a total turning around. I was going one way, and now I'm going the total opposite. It doesn't just mean SAYING what I'm going to do, and it doesn't mean just KNOWING the right thing to do--it means acting on it. It means that mundane details such as time won't let me so easily kick my beliefs to the curb. It means that I no longer just say I have a faith, but that I truly act on it. It means that my shop-a-holic tendencies are going to take a backseat to the priorities that he sets in my life. Not that I can't have the things that I enjoy, but that if it comes between clothes and giving generously and I feel like I'm supposed to give, that clothes will have to wait.

Richard said two things more things that really resonate with me, first, you don't know where you land. People seeking the kingdom live different lives. Some are plagued with sickness, some are healthy as horses. Some are persecuted, some live without that fear. Some are rich, some are poor. Some are missionaries, some live in their homestates. God calls us to different things--we're supposed to seek his kingdom and see where he wants us. Second--it you try to live into the kingdom only when it fits, you're not getting it. This is a commitment. It's a complete change. It a total a complete shift and re-prioritization of my life.

So, where do I go from here. God only knows (ha, literally). But I'm ready for the change. I want something different. I want that burn that I feel when I'm running and feeling good. I want that proud feeling that I have when I eat healthy and choose to say no. And I want my life to be a reflection of hope and love in the world.

"I’m not sure what my plan of attack will be. After all, how do you change your outlook? But I at least know where I am and where I want to go to. I know I need to view exercise (faith) as a (the) vital part of my life." Back To Her Roots (italics mine :) )