Working my way into Heaven...

A couple weeks ago at church, Minister Lee quoted Matthew 6:33

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

I have heard this verse so many times before, but that day it really resonated in my mind.

I have been caught up in so much for so long that I had been putting God on the backburner. There is a saying that where you spend most of your time is what really has your heart. And, unfortunately, I had not been spending most of my time with God; I had made myself too busy for Him. And what’s amazing is that I found myself too busy doing God’s work to make time for Him.

How can I expect to live a Godly lifestyle without God Himself? I can’t. And for a long time I tried and wondered why it didn’t work. But, I’m thankful to God that in His mercy He has been showing me myself. I am so thankful that He has not continued to let me live inside the lie in my head. He has let me see that I have been trying to work my way into heaven.

I can see now how easy it is for people to get so caught up in doing God’s work that they miss out on relationship with Him. And it’s a shame because God doesn’t want servants, He desires sons and daughters.

Matthew 7:21-23 are some hard verses to read, but I have found myself on those pages:

"Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (NKJV)

I can see how that day could go. I would come before the Lord, telling Him about all the wonderful things I’ve done in His name, the people I’ve helped and prayed for, the fasts I’ve been, the few scriptures I’ve learned and the few ways I’ve been obedient.
And I can see how I’ve been setting myself up for the Lord to say that He never knew me because in all the time that I had called myself a Christian, I never took the time to truly and intimately know Christ.

I have seen the pattern in all of the relationships in my life; constantly trying to do things for other people and believing that that is what would make others love and accept me. But with God, it’s not about what I can do for Him; it’s about who I am to Him. And in the end heaven is all about relationship.

God,
I thank you for coming into my life and turning everything upside down. You have shown me that there is so much more to being a Christian than going to church on Sunday, doing work for the church and saying prayers I don’t really think You’re hearing. I thank you for the desire you have put in me to have a deeper relationship with You; I enjoy the time we spend together and I can’t wait to get to heaven to be with You forever. I pray that we will continue to grow closer as I seek You first.