IS YOUR HEART SET ON THE THINGS OF THE WORLD, OR THINGS ABOVE?

SCRIPTURE:
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts 
on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  
(Colossians 3:1)

MEDITATION:
Would you agree that we live in an unstable world?
Would you also agree that we live in a world 
that encourages us to continue to strive for things just beyond our reach?
Striving for success is never a bad thing, 
unless our efforts leave no room for the Lord.

Some can become so focused on being successful in the eyes of the world 
that they fail in making any efforts to please their Lord and Savior.
In fact, some leave Him behind 
as they charge forward in their efforts to be revered by the world.
Either consciously or unconsciously, 
some develop an opinion that spending time with the Lord 
will consume valuable time they need for achieving their goals.

We can see the same exclusion of the Lord 
whenever people are in relationships.
They can become so infatuated with each other 
that they have no time for the Lord.
Some do not want the Lord involved in their relationship because they know 
there are things going on in their relationship that are out of His Will.

You can sense their feelings of guilt as they try to justify their actions
and lash out at others who even mention that what they are doing is wrong.
They fail to realize that when others call attention 
to their actions being beyond the boundaries established by God, 
it is an expression of love and concern for them.

They often misinterpret the concerns of others 
as being judgmental and having a feeling of superiority.
God tells us to love others as we would love ourselves.
That means that we should warn others of dangers as we would warn ourselves 
(or hopefully be warned by someone else, since we all can have blind spots).

The glaring question is, 
“How do we avoid chasing worldly desires 
and leaving the Lord out of our lives?”
Good question and it is one the scriptures answers for us.
If we have been ‘raised with Christ’ (meaning we are Christians), 
then we should have ‘things above’ at the top of our priority list.

When we do that, our hearts are changed and we look forward 
to a glorious reunion with the Lord we worship and praise.
If we are excluding Him, or giving Him a low priority, 
then how could we possibly look forward to a relationship 
that has never been established and/or nourished?

When we give the Lord His rightful place in our lives, He will
bless us with the things we need to bring us joy and happiness.
That removes a lot of pressure from us, doesn’t it?
We no longer are consumed with the frustrations of chasing worldly goals
that keep moving a little further from our reach as we get closer to them.
We also have a greater peace, because we include the Lord in our lives
which removes the feelings of guilt for excluding Him.

ACTION:
Do you think about things of this world, or things above?
Does your heart have a desire to please yourself, 
please the eyes of the world, or please the Lord?
How is your relationship with the Lord?
Do you spend time trying to nourish your relationship with Him?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, You know how the world can lure me away from You, if 
I let it. Protect me from being swept into a never-ending life of striving 
to impress others with my accomplishments to the detriment of my 
relationship with You. Redirect my thoughts from the things of the world 
to things above. You know what a struggle it is for me to change my heart 
in my own strength, but I have faith and confidence that You can accomplish 
what I cannot. Thank You for Your promise of a homecoming for those who 
have given their lives to You. Help me to establish a close relationship 
with You, if I do not have one already. If I do have a relationship with 
You, help me to nourish it by spending more time with You and giving You 
top priority in my life.”