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Chaos

How To ‘Seek First His Kingdom’ In Chaotic Times

by Sarah Crockett July 25, 2022

written by Sarah Crockett

If you take a snapshot of any period of time in history you will find some sort of chaotic event happening. In Biblical days, we saw plagues of locust, beheadings, and edicts for killing the first born. The last few years the chaos of the world has taken the form of viruses, lockdowns, and unrest in many nations across the globe. The chaos on the earth is ultimately a result of sin (Romans 3:23), but we can seek first His Kingdom and live above what is happening in the earth. We can live seated in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6) for we are co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17)!

As believers, we live in the world, but we do not have to be of the world. The way Jesus slept through the storm in the same boat with the disciples who were afraid, we can live at peace and in peace even in the midst of chaos. Jesus is the way (John 14:6) and His life and teachings demonstrate how to seek first His Kingdom.

What Does Jesus Say?

The Gospel books of the Bible have the “red letters” or direct teachings of Jesus. We find His instruction to seek first His Kingdom in Matthew 6,

Matthew 6:25-33 NIV – “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

28 And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.“

Keep reading as we extract several practical tips for how to seek first His Kingdom even in the midst of chaotic times.

Don’t Worry

Matthew 6:25 NIV – ““Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?”

Worry is to the kingdom of darkness as faith is to the Kingdom of Light. It is faith in the wrong kingdom! Worry steals our focus, kills our hope, and destroys our lives. It can paralyze us and prevent us from moving in faith. Verse 25 makes it clear that life is more that providing and protecting ourselves. We have a Good Father who is for us, not against us (Romans 8:31) and He wants to take care of our every need. There is no need to worry!

Prayer: Father, help me to trust that You only want good things for me, amen.

You Are Valuable

Matthew 6:26 NIV – “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?“

Your heavenly Father wants to take care of you because you are valuable to Him. He was there when you were knit together in your. mother’s womb and He knows your every thought (Psalm 139). Your heavenly Father has been there since the moment you were created and has been intricately involved in your life ever since. You are valuable to Him. To Him, you were worth exchanging His only Son’s life.

The Father loves, the Father sees you, the Father desires that you seek first His Kingdom…not so that you can serve Him, but because He wants His kids back. You are worth dying for!

Prayer: Father, give me a revelation of the value You carry in your heart for me, amen.

How Much More?!

Matthew 28-30 NIV – “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?”

You are worth more than a sparrow. At initial glance that makes complete sense. “Yes, I’m of course more than a bird!” However, when you consider that the sparrows are provided for without doing a thing that type of trust is what becomes challenging in our walk with God.

You must ask yourself if you trust God. Do you trust Him with your finances…your marriage…your children? What is your response when something goes wrong in an area of your life? Are you able to trust God, to seek first His Kingdom? Or do you start trusting in your own efforts? Maybe you even get mad at Him. That just makes us human, but the reality is that you can trust the Father. You are more than a sparrow. It’s time to increase your faith to believe!

Prayer: Father, remind me of the many times you have come through for me and help me to cultivate a heart of thanksgiving for all You’ve done, amen.

But God

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

To seek first His Kingdom is an action. There is energy and effort when we decide to seek something (or Someone). You are made righteous by the blood of Jesus. You don’t have to earn righteousness which means the only effort on your part is seeking.

Are you looking to the Father over the latest news report? Do you look for answers in the Word of God or is your main source books written by men? He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. He has all the answers you will ever need and He promises that ALL things will be added as you seek first His Kingdom. Will you trust Him?

Prayer: Father, I choose to trust You and I choose to make, the often difficult choice, of seeking You and Your Kingdom above all else. I choose to trust You to protect, provide, and care for me and my loved ones, amen.

Seek First His Kingdom

July 25, 2022 0 comments

Articles

When God And The Devil Are Taken Out, Chaos Will Ensue

by John Mathai November 29, 2020

written by John Mathai

Leaving Him Out

In this age where God is left out of most of our lives, we become blind to the tactics of the devil. He is still there whether we are aware of Him or not. The devil is also there and we may make him our friend by listening to him. He is subtle in his devices to entrap us in his way of thinking and doing things. He works on our fleshly desires and tempts us to sin, but we normally dismiss it and call it a weakness. Our world views are dictated by our beliefs. If we believe in God then He is part of our perception and outlook. In this world, belief in God is shaky and so we resort to a humanized version of God who we can control.

Chaos

We can see the evidence of our state of affairs in different walks of life. Our concept of God drives our views on politics, family, culture, and duty. Without God, we make up our own rules of living. Laws keep changing to suit the opinion of popular influencers like Hollywood. We, therefore, drift in our thinking and views and accept the lowest common denominator. What once was thought of as sinful behavior has become acceptable. We have moved from a position of the reverential fear of God to a position of making ourselves god.

Solution

How can we turn from sliding down this slippery path to destruction? Only a change of heart can change our course. There needs to be a radical change of heart to experience a radical shift from a self-centered view of life to a God-centered view. Many are trapped in ways of thinking and doing that result in a hopeless robotic existence. In conclusion, there is no hope if our only hope is limited to this life. Jesus came to give us hope of eternal life. This is the only hope of turning us away from the devil’s path to destruction. What is your destination: heaven or hell? We each need to make the choice now to be saved. We can all be saved because God does not want anyone to perish. Finally, choose today whom you will serve. I choose to serve Jesus.

John Mathai

November 29, 2020 0 comments

Articles

How To Have a Thankful Heart In A Chaotic World

by Joanna Flavin November 21, 2018

written by Joanna Flavin

The holiday season has arrived, as quickly as ever, with Thanksgiving just one day away. This year, like every year, Halloween hadn’t even passed, but Christmas displays were already begging for our attention at every store and on every TV commercial. This is nothing new. For as long as I can remember once Fall arrived, Thanksgiving and Christmas were begging for attention from every angle. That’s our society – rush, rush, rush. Always pushing us on to the next thing, never allowing us time to dwell on the beauty of the moment.

We live in a fast-paced world, that is only picking up speed.

busy

As we enter into a day of Giving Thanks, how can we slow down? How can we pause and breathe in the spirit of the season, a spirit of gratitude? I have recently seen a lot of influencers on Instagram talking about a “gratitude journal”. A journal where you start your day writing down 3 things that you are grateful for. It is a practice of positive psychology, surely to set the tone for your day – a tone of awareness of the endless blessings around you. When you focus more of your time on your blessings, you don’t have the time to focus on the negative.

When it is all said and done, a spirit of gratitude or thankfulness really is a mental state, isn’t it?

Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Paul nailed it. Our circumstances are always changing as the seasons of life come and go. The chaos and the unknowns often bring a sense of loss of control and anxiety. We can give in to the world’s rush, or we can make the choice to lay it all at His feet. Lay down the anxiety, the worry, the fear, the depression, the stress, the anger, and the pain. Pick yourself up with thankfulness, presenting all your requests to God. Let everything else go.

“We can give in to the world’s rush, or we can make the choice to lay it all at His feet”

For awhile my three-year-old and five-year-old would pray everyday, thanking God for our new couch and our newly painted kitchen cabinets. At first it was cute, but when it kept happening I thought I had raised little materialistic monsters that were only thankful for “things”. But, I realized that they were teaching me a lesson. They truly were thankful for these new blessings. They were embodying a spirit of thankfulness, in such a pure way. While I was still complaining about how hard, and grueling the task of painting those cabinets was, they were pausing with gratitude for my hard work.

What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving? What are you holding on to? What are you trying to control? Who do you need to forgive? What bitterness is growing in your heart that you need to uproot?

This world is chaotic enough. Our lives are noisy enough. If you want freedom, a heart overflowing with gratitude, joy, peace, and love… then WITH THANKSGIVING, present your requests to God. The burdens of this world will be lifted and you will be restored.

November 21, 2018 0 comments

Faith

I Started Living in Freedom When I Let Go of Control

by Hayley Tearall July 7, 2017

written by Hayley Tearall

Human Control Is a Lie

We were never designed to be in control

Originally, God was in control of this earth, and then the Fall (which was actually humanity’s first attempt at gaining control!) led to the enemy having power over this world. Aside from the fact that obviously Jesus came to exercise His full power and authority once and for all, I want to focus on the fact that humanity trying to take control is one of the biggest pitfalls in our walk with God, trapping us in a cycle of destruction that can only be stopped when we choose to hand back control to our Creator.

At age 11, I was diagnosed with depression. This was something huge that felt out of my control, and I started to try and ‘control’ these suddenly overwhelming emotions with self-harm. Fast forward through my teenage years, I began suffering from anxiety and panic attacks, insomnia, dissociation, and started drinking a lot. Now, when I think about it all, there’s a common link between all these coping mechanisms, behaviours, and biological protection methods (subconscious coping mechanisms). They are all a form of control:

Self-harm: an attempt to relieve some emotion by releasing endorphins
Insomnia: this began as one thing I could control, then my body decided to start following my control
Alcohol use: my response to feeling out-of-control when dissociated, anxious or low
 Dissociation: my body’s escape method when things became too stressful and overwhelming
Anxiety/panic: my body’s fight-or-flight response to perceived danger/threat, worrying

Interestingly, a stay at a residential programme, away from all the stress and in a place of safety, allowed me to explore my own emotions and behaviours and come to this huge revelation:

Whenever I felt anxious or low (unsafe), I craved danger (for me this was in the form of destructive coping mechanisms). The reason I craved danger instead of safety (the more obvious and appealing choice) was not because I actually wanted it, but because the fact I already felt unsafe (perceived danger) meant that if I actively chose danger then at least I was remaining in control of what was going on. Or so I thought.

Obviously, this is a lie, because it led to me being more and more out of control. Actually, whatever you use to control something, often controls you.

But anyway. I realised through this revelation that in fact, I was never meant to have control, and what I really needed was safety, not danger. When I accepted this, I felt worse for a season because it meant giving up all the things that I had used to attempt to control and alleviate my emotions. But upon doing so, and letting God become my Safety (which He 100% totally is, there are hundreds of Bible verses to back this up), I found freedom.

Freedom to no longer strive for control but to let God, who in the perfect blueprint design of the earth originally had full control, take back the wheel and steer my life into His perfect plan. Let Him take your hand through the difficult times, the challenges and the times where danger is real. Trying to sort your life out yourself creates more of a problem than there originally was. Giving up control to Him doesn’t guarantee an easy time, but it makes it easier than our attempts to control will ever make it.

July 7, 2017 0 comments