Center of it All

This past weekend, I had the privilege to lead worship at FBC, Sealy. They are currently in an interim time but have a new pastor arriving in a couple of weeks. The interim has been with them now for two year....crazy, huh? Anyway, I spoke out of Philippians 1:12-30. As he spoke, he made a statement that I know to be true but had never put much thought into. In fact, as he spoke, I wondered how many times I miscommunicated the same point.

His statement was that God shouldn't be #1 in our lives, but rather should be the center of our lives. He stated that #1 often changes in our lives. I love college football and I got to thinking about it that way. How many times do we see teams rise to #1 in the rankings, only to slip out of that spot after a week or maybe two, depending on how well they play. The same thing happens in our lives: we go to a revival, a conference, or camp and get all excited about God and we say, "God, you have the #1 priority in my life." And then we come home and something happens and before we know it, God has slipped to #2, #3, or lower.

But, if we make God the center of our lives, then everything revovles around that relationship. Think about the North Star. Now I'm not an astronomy nut...just a nut, but if you look for certain constellations in the sky at night-provided you live where you can see the stars-you can find them easier if you locate the North Star and move from there. The same is true in our lives. When we place God in the center, it is so much easier to find our purpose and way.

I've started going through Henry Blackaby's study, Experiencing God, again. It's been several years since I did that study. It had a profound effect on me at the time. But Blackaby talks about God be the center of our lives. To know and do God's will, we have to not place Him #1, but place Him in the center.