“Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

Before the days of satellites and GPS the only way for sailors to get their bearing out at sea was by “shooting” the sun. Only by locating the sun and their position to it could sailors figure out where they were and which direction they were to sail in order to reach their destination.

Without the sun, they were hopelessly lost.

What was true for sailors is true for us. The only way for us to find our bearings is by looking at God.

Without the Son, we are hopelessly lost.

So, how does this work in real life? What does it mean to seek God first?

There are times when there are more uncertainties than there is clarity. Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you didn’t know where to go, what is best, which way to turn? What do you do when you don’t know?

This is where seeking God first comes to play.

When you find yourself in a situation where you don’t know, stick to what you know. Fall back on the things you know with absolute certainty and do those things. In time, as you are busy doing what you know uncertainties become clear.

So, what are some things you know with absolute certainty?

• God loves you. God wants what is best for you. God knows better than you what is the best for you
• Since that is the case, worship him, read his book, pray to him. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• You married? Stay absolutely faithful to your spouse. Love them. Serve them. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• Single? Stay chaste and holy. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• Love God and serve others. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• The list could go on and on. You know what belongs on this list of certainties.

You see, even in those times when we don’t know what to do with certain particulars, there is much we do know. In times of uncertainty, turn to what you do know and do those things.

“Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But that is not what God desires; rather, he devises ways so that a banished person does not remain banished from him” (2 Samuel 14:14).

I love this verse.

God disciplines, rebukes, and corrects those whom he loves. He has to. He cannot leave us in our sins. He cannot leave us in our addictions and our failures. God has to change us. God has to correct us, discipline us.

But, God never disciplines for discipline’s sake. God always disciplines, corrects, and rebukes in order to restore us.

I love the truth expressed in this verse.

John Calvin said that the three signs of the true church of Jesus Christ are:

• Where the word of God is faithfully preached and heard
• Where the sacraments of God are faithfully administered
• Where the discipline of God is faithfully practiced

Church discipline is a necessary marker of the church.

I will be the first to admit that the church has not always practiced church discipline well. Too often we have disciplined in order to punish instead of disciplining for correction and restoration.

But here’s the thing about restoration. The only way church discipline works is when we are humble enough to accept the discipline of the church. Too often, when we are on the receiving end of church discipline, we bolt. We leave. We say, “This is yucky. I don’t like it.”

And the byproduct of this is that we never grow. The only way we will grow and mature in our faith is to mutually submit and surrender to the discipline and correction of the church.

Friends, I pray that we are a church that practices Godly correction and discipline in order to restore people to God’s family. And, I pray that we will all humble ourselves to receive correction, rebuke, and discipline.

“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:2).

The verse of the day today commands us to set our minds on things above.

The Greek for “set your minds” is one word, and it is written in the present imperative. That tells us couple of things:

• Present tense – this is an ongoing, never ending, in every moment we breathe and have our being, set our minds on the things above
• Imperative voice – this is a command. This is not a suggestion. This is not only a good idea. This is an order. If we are followers of Christ, we are commanded to set our minds on the things above

The reason why we are commanded to constantly set our minds on the things above, and not on earthly things is because we don’t think of things above naturally.

Earthly things we see without even trying. The tragedy of Afghanistan, the devastating destruction of Haiti’s earthquake, Hurricane Ida, the rising gun violence in our cities, the rising covid cases, hospitalizations, and deaths, the inability of our national leaders to come together to work toward what is best four our national interests, etc.

All of these things scream for our attention. We don’t have to look at them. They are in our face every time we open up the newspaper, listen to the radio, or watch television.

In fact, to not think of these things constantly, we have to avoid them.

But when’s the last time you just thought of Godly things, things above, things about the kingdom of God without trying?

See, these things, Godly things, eternal things, things that ultimately and truly matter, have to be intentionally brought up to our minds because they don’t just happen. We have to be intentional. We have to be purposeful. We have to call it up.

Take your eyes and set your minds on the things above, and not on earthly things. Be intentional about thinking kingdom thoughts. Make yourself think kingdom thoughts for kingdom thoughts are the only things that ultimately and eternally matter.

As a bonus, when you think kingdom thoughts, you’re going to have a much better day and you’re going to be a much better human being.