All your lovin'

So, I've been thinking. I think God has shown me something new.

I'm big on the word "blessing," you may know. It's a family thing, too. When we have family "roll call" it goes by blessing. For example, I'm Blessing #2, because I'm the second child. And Melodi is Blessing #8 because she's the 8th. You understand I'm sure... Anyway, it became a habit for me a while ago that I would pray that I would be a blessing in people's lives. I wanted to be a blessing to people.

But I think I had it a little messed up. My goal in life is not to bless people. My goal in life should be to bless God.

What I think I'm finding, is I had things a little bit backwards. For example, by constantly seeking to bless people, I'd naturally make the concept of "blessing God" secondary. But I really thought it made sense. If I bless my sister by doing something for her, I'm obviously blessing God. Like, what I do unto others, I do unto God. I thought that was fine. But really... shouldn't God come first? Shouldn't blessing others be an overflow of blessing God? Shouldn't blessing God be primary, therefore creating a rumbling of secondary reactions too?

If I'm blessing God, I'm obviously being a blessing to people around me too. It's a sure find. If I bless God, I am living my life in a way that would bless other people.

So I started thinking how this concept is comparable to everyday life. I love metaphors. I love applicable comparisons. I love breaking things down. I do that with almost everything in life. Sometimes I even chop my salads up so I can eat it more peaceably.

But isn't the concept similar to relationship with other people? Like we assume God is pleased with us because we know He understands our motives. He is so flawlessly loving He will always reward us for our efforts. He understands us when no one else does. And that is all true... He understands us, He knows our hearts, He knows the things about us no one else does.

But what about a situation we can relate to... like a couple in love. What if the girl decided her man knew her well enough not to feel bad if he came as a secondary concern in her life. Like if she were to constantly say, "Sorry Love, but I should hang out with this other girl tonight. She could really use some company." And instead of showing her love to her man, she holds on to the concept that he understands. After a while, I doubt that relationship could go on any longer.

Ok, I know it's a little bit of a stretch. But the punch line is this... it doesn't exactly cut it. Whatever we place as secondary importance in our lives, only gets the left overs from the primary.

I need to give God my first fruits of my love. Not just my money. Not just in my quiet time with Him. With everything. With the way I bless other people... I first need to seek blessing Him. That's never going to change. Not when I have a husband and kids... not when I have grandkids running around... not when I'm hanging out with the people most important in my life. Giving God the first fruits of my love should be my primary concern. When that's in alignment... everything else falls into place. Everything else that happens, everything else that affects the others around me, is secondary and happens on it's own.

There's a reason that our relationships with God are compared so powerfully and so many times to a relationship between a man and a woman. It's a relationship. It's about love. Devotion. And so I leave you with the wisdom of Four Tops:

Baby, I need your lovin'
I got to have all your lovin'
Baby, I need your lovin'
Got to have all your lovin'

They got it. Some of my love just don't cut it. My prime goes to the Lover of all time.