The greatest peace I ever received was when God boldly spoke to me and released me of the burden of having an obligated relationship with Him. 

It sounds heretical to some, but the reality is that He was showing me that He’s not forcing us to be with Him. He wants children who freely choose to come to Him. 

That is true love.

At the same time, faith is evident in action. If we really believe what the Bible says and who God is, then we are going to do something and say something. If someone examined our choices and conversations would they see someone who is passionate and sold out for the Kingdom or one who really likes work, family, sports, gear, etc.? 

God should be the ultimate priority in our lives. No excuses. He is absolutely everything to us because He gave everything for us. But how do we know if that’s true for our lives?

1) We Give God Our Time

One of the few things that really stuck with me from college was when a professor informed our class that he could tell what was most important to us by what we do with our free time. I was rather convicted. 

How many hours have I spent on my phone yet feel like I don’t have enough time to give God an intentional 5 or 10 minutes in the day? Do we spend more time seeking out new gear or seeking out God?

I don’t think it’s about clocking hours, but it is about spending intentional quality time as you would with any other healthy relationship in your life. I like to think about my time every day as having coffee with God. It needs to be personal. 

I find that it’s especially helpful to set aside time in the morning because it significantly affects the way we walk out the rest of the day. Also, some of the best moments I’ve shared with God have been outside of my morning routine because of the sacrifice and intentionality involved.

2) We Talk About Him

Similar to the first point – you can easily tell what a person is passionate about by what they say. It sounds obvious, but what comes out of our mouths shows what we want other people to know. If we want people to know about God or are passionate about what He is doing in other people’s lives, we will naturally talk about Him frequently. 

Words are a reflection of the heart.

“…out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Matthew 12:34 ESV

3) We Promote Him and Others

In current culture, we spend so much time trying to advance our agenda and promote ourselves. It’s easy to fall into this cultural trend when we are surrounded by constant striving and display of accomplishments on social media. 

We like to think that if we promote ourselves hard enough we will have the things we’ve always wanted. However, the biblical truth is that God will promote you if you promote His ways. If we actually believe He is as good as He says He is, then it should be completely natural to promote the Kingdom.

Are we stewarding our resources and platforms He has given us well?

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33 NIV

4) We Don’t Make Excuses

Time doesn’t own you. You own time. Time is a currency that you get to spend how you wish. It’s a choice to invest it in one area over another. Even the busiest person in the world still has the choice to set their alarm 10 minutes earlier and use that time to intentionally focus on what God if He is a priority.

“My heart, O God, is steadfast, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make music. Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn.” Psalms 57:7-8 NIV

5) There is Fruit In Our Lives

If we are spending time in God’s presence a natural byproduct is sonship. This leads to confidently walking in your identity and producing fruit because you know who you are. 

“A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit.” Matthew 7:17 NLT

Knowing and believing that we are a loved son or daughter will produce good fruit in our lives. If we see how God truly sees us we will see how He sees other people and testimonies will follow. 

Our lives should be impacting other people, not just our own.

6) We Worship Off Stage

I once heard a pastor say that they don’t want anyone on their worship team who doesn’t worship when they’re alone. Worship isn’t just a scheduled Sunday appointment. It’s a lifestyle and overflow of being in a relationship with God. A healthy relationship with a spouse or significant other will have healthy, authentic, and frequent affirmations. So should a healthy relationship with God.

“But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” Matthew 6:6 ESV

7) We Are Open-handed with Everything

Simply put, if you lost something today and it would break you and how you see the world, it’s an idol. There’s such a thing as godly sorrow, but when something defines your joy and hope more than God, there is a problem. 

When I gain something good in my life, I always try to make it a point to place it open-handedly before God. Most things in life are seasonal, so there is maturity in being willing to let anything go. To me, the ultimate test of faith is in crisis and loss. Is God still our priority there or do we choose to hold onto brokenness and hopelessness?

In the end, life with God isn’t about legalistic rituals to make us feel more at peace with who we are. It’s about living from peace about who God says we are. If we look at our lives and don’t see evidence of the points above it’s just a simple reminder to get back in the presence of God. 

No guilt. No condemnation. Just love yourself and take some steps towards what matters most.

What are some ways God has stretched you to make Him a priority?

You may also be interested in these posts!

• Combating Injustice with Kingdom Perspective: We Cannot Be Silent
• Jonathan Traylor: Blindfolded Faith & Surrendering in the Unknown
• Bringing Unity & Kingdom Mindset Amidst Racial Injustice
• The Power of Vulnerable Worship with Sean Curran [PODCAST]