Order or Organized

Life is cluttered. So much stuff. So little room. In fact, it seems the more room I have the more stuff I fill it with. But where is it’s place? Where does it belong?

On my very diligent days, I tackle a pile or a closet or even a room. “Aha! I will organize you! I will sort you and group you and place you in piles,” I say to it. And I mean it. I will sift through the mess and impose my will upon it. And I do. When I’m done I look upon it and feel satisfied. Temporarily.

Because I’m a faker. I have simply re-shuffled what was there. Perhaps found it a home with other things like it. Tossed a few things, given a few away. I have organized. But I haven’t added to the order. What my life needs is not organization, but order.

The things I have, people I love, things I do  – they don’t need to all be connected and sorted and made to function well. That’s God’s job. The job He has given me is to place them in the proper order. What comes first? What is most important?

Why is this so hard? Matthew 6:33 tells us.

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

For me, hard comes because whatever is clamoring loudest in my mind gets the most attention. Like a small child tapping, tapping, “Mommy, mommy, mommy.” It isn’t satisfied until I respond. It isn’t urgent; it’s just persevering, but putting it aside to do later so I can tend to the most important thing, the Kingdom thing, is incredibly difficult.

Especially if the tapping masquerades as something easy to check off my list. “I’ll just do these few things and then get to the real work,” I tell myself. And there I am…organizing instead of ordering.

Lord, today, help me silence what distracts and attend to the first thing on your to-do list. Amen.