First Things First

I don't know about you, but I would be lost without a To-Do list. Every day I have a list of all the things that I need to do. If I don't get them all done, I add them to the list for the next day. A To-Do list helps me to make sure I don't forget something that is very important. I have a sample of a To-Do list with some of the things you might put on your list.

• Make my bed
• Ride my bicycle
• Clean my room
• Play with my friends
• Go shopping at toy store
• Do my homework
• Go to the movies
• Help dad mow the lawn
• Watch TV

There is one problem I can see with our To-Do list. There are some things on our list that are fun and easy to do while other things might be more difficult. We might be tempted to do the fun and easy things first and leave the other things to do later—if we have time. I must confess that I sometimes find myself doing that. We must remember that all of the things on our To-Do list may be good, but some are more important than others.

One day, Jesus was heading toward Jerusalem with a group of disciples. As they were walked along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."

Jesus said to the man, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but I don't even have a place to lay my head." He wanted the man to understand that following him might not always be a fun and easy.

Then Jesus turned to another man in the group and said, "Follow me."

The man answered, "First let me go and bury my Father."

One of the other men with Jesus said, "Lord, I will follow you, but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family."

Jesus answered him, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."

Jesus wants you and me to follow him too. If he were here speaking to us today, he might say to us, "It's OK for you to have a To-Do list, but you need to make sure that you keep first things first, and the first thing on your list must be to follow me."

It is good for us to have a plan for our daily life. There are many good things that we do each day, but the most important thing is to follow Jesus. Let's remember to keep first things first.

Heavenly Father, we understand that it isn't always easy to follow Jesus, but nothing in life is more important. Help us to make following Jesus the number one thing in our life. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.

To-do List