Why The Main Thing is The Main Thing

There's a tendency to separate spiritual things from practical things.It's as if spiritual formation only addresses the inner, metaphysical, intangible things and practical tools like leadership are addressed outside of the umbrella of formation and discipleship.

If this is truly the case, then we're all in trouble. Big trouble.

I believe that there is a great deal of value in understanding what's most important in our lives. In some ways, values clarification and understanding the highest priorities in our daily life are more like spiritual disciplines than organizational strategies.

The reason being is that the center of our life in Christ is understanding both who we are and who we are not. Clarifying the things that are most important, most central to our identity in Him, is an exercise that requires us to ruthlessly assess the way we are designed and the way God has shaped our lives to operate.

Too many times we are engaged in good things that turn into destructive habits because we chose to pursue them outside of our core identity in Christ.

We are His beloved. Created for His purpose. If we clarify what "His purpose" is and ruthlessly pursue it by both active planning and creating space for His Spirit to empower us, we'll find ourselves less hurried - less ambitious - less exhausted - and less distracted.

Take some time today and clarify, through prayer and thinking on who God has made you to be through your history and passions, and make a list of the 5 most important things for your life as God designed it. Then, assess whether or not those things are actual priorities by looking at how much time you give to each one during an average week.