The First Button

Misaligning a shirt’s first button misaligns all the others. The same goes for spiritual priorities!

THIS WEEK’S BOLD STEP DEVOTION

“After the wall had been rebuilt and I had set the doors in place, the gatekeepers, the musicians and the Levites were appointed.” (Nehemiah 7:1)

We never really appreciate having electricity in our home until the power goes out. Simple things like getting dressed, putting on makeup, cooking, or even studying for a test can be quite challenging in the dark. In a recent power outage, I was attempting to button my shirt and missed buttoning the first button which caused every button after that to be misaligned. Starting with the wrong first button can really set you up for failure.

Spiritual priorities are vital to our success as followers of Jesus. They are driven by our values and beliefs and ultimately manifest in our behavior. If we don’t get our spiritual priorities (first button) aligned, everything else from our marriages to finances to careers will follow in misalignment. Define the motivations behind your life by seeking to make God the center and priority of your heart and mind.

We see this play out beautifully in the book of Nehemiah when Nehemiah was appointed by God to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. He did so with 45 workers, who took only 52 days to complete the task and not without naysayers and threats along the way—which was a real accomplishment in 448 BCE! But something I find even more impressive is that after the work was complete, Nehemiah didn’t sit back and revel at the impressive structure. Rather, he got to work assigning and appointing worship leaders, gatekeepers, and Levites to carry out the worship and divine work in the Temple. Nehemiah’s priority was to restart the worship pattern and replant the high calling of following God—the heart and success of the city.

Making God a priority in your life can be challenging in the fast-paced world we live in today with so many things competing for our attention. However, by taking time to identify your core values, realign your commitments, and make space for God, God can reclaim the center of your heart and life. It’s our choices that reveal what our priorities are.

Listen to the sermon series: Securing the Borders of Your Life

Part 1Part 2

Ministry Update from Mark

It’s my favorite time of the year welcoming undergraduate, graduate, and online students to the historic Moody Bible Institute! Our esteemed faculty have been busy praying, planning, and preparing for this new school year at Moody where I’m privileged to serve as the 10th president. One of my favorite jobs as president is to lead a special convocation where I and our faculty pray over and commission our students for their time at Moody. Please pray with us that God would do a great work in and through these students in the coming days!