First Things First

I've been having some health issues lately and finally decided to do something about it. Some one recently defined me as an uptight or wound tight type of person, I analyze most everything, and I internalize, which leads to stress. For several years my blood pressure has been high and I've not wanted to go to the doctor, so I do the next best thing, research it all on the internet...which means that I know what is going to happen to me if I don't get my BP down, and now every ache or pain is the one that is going to kill me...I'm not about to die yet so I'm working to reduce my blood pressure. I take a couple aspirin per day, two-three garlic tablets, two-three cayenne pepper tablets, a multivitiman, and I drink some apple cider vinegar several times per week...mixed with water of course...and I walk twice a day, early in the morning and later in the evening. I've lost some weight and am feeling better, and am starting to believe I'll probably live.

But as I've been walking I've also been praying, and what I've realized is that often our walk as believers is much like my walk of health, we only get serious during crisis moments. Jesus taught us to seek the Kingdom first, we tend to relegate it to Sunday, Wednesday, and whenever we're in trouble. I'm thinking to myself if I would have gotten serious when I first realized my BP was high that I would probably be lighter and not need to lose 30 lbs, it's much harder at 44 than it was at 24...Spiritually, the Bible encourages us to lay aside the weights and even the sin that weighs us down, that besets or entraps us...Preventative medicine is much easier than curing after the fact, it can be done...just usually takes longer.

Don't misunderstand, I've not turned into a health guru, still eat french fries, but I'm getting where I need to be. I want that to be true of my spiritual life, not weighted down with things that really don't matter, not consumed with the trivial, but eating and drinking the things of the Kingdom that will cause me to grow up and to mature...not just grow out!