Priorities in Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

It was released less than three months after my day of birth, but it's one of those classic movies that many of us "more mature folks" have seen and remember, the movie "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad, World." The plot begins with four car loads of people hearing the dying words of a thief. With his last breath, he tells of a $350,000 treasure buried in Santa Rosita. Then it is off to the races as the quirky cast attempts to grab the stolen cash.

While our life is not as dramatic, the story line is the same. A dying thief has told us a lie about a non-existent pot of gold, and we're now clawing and scratching our way through this world in search of treasure that doesn't exist and will not satisfy, even if we did find it.

The point is to check our priorities. Are the pursuits of this world trampling our relationship with God? Does the routine of domestic gathering dominate our time and undermine our commitment to the commands of our Divine Creator?

There are four basic matters that First Steps Discipleship challenges you to fit into your life.

1. A fulfilling prayer life
   
2. The study of God's Word


3. Fellowship & service to His people


4. Testifying to the Glory of God

With all the quirks of our own personalities, the madness of this world, and the various curve balls thrown our way, there are no more important tasks than the being and doing of the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
- Matthew 28:18-20 ESV

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”
- Matthew 22:37-40 ESV

Know the Blessing