“…but you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will come to you as a matter of course.” (Matthew 6:33, J. B. Phillips)
The message of the entire Bible can be summed up in two words: “God First.” That is not easy. In fact, that is impossible without the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3). This concept is not complicated, but we complicate it because we do not want to put God first. However, over and over again in the Scripture the bottom-line truth in a Psalm, in the life of a Bible character, in a parable, a metaphor, and a teaching of Jesus will come down to this simple concept: “God First.”
I was blessed with a godly mother. She often said to me: “If Jesus Christ is anything to you, then Jesus Christ is everything to you. Because until Jesus Christ is everything to you, Dick, He isn’t really anything to you.” As I have carefully studied the values of Jesus Christ, I have realized that my mother had the support of the Lord when she brought my profession of faith to a verdict the way she did.
Matthew 6:33 is the conclusion of a study Jesus gave regarding values. He taught that our heart is where our treasures are. He challenged us with questions like: “Where is your heart? What are your treasures? What is your life? What is your body?” and “Who is your master?”
Think of a target with a bulls-eye surrounded by ten or twelve circles. According to Jesus, the bulls-eye of our priority target should be that our first value is God. We are to put Him first. If we do that we have the promise of Jesus that God will bless us with everything we need.
Are you putting God first?
Dick Woodward, 09 November 2010
4SpiritualSecrets 
I agree. And I would like to request P Dick’s comment on my question: How do I measure – in a practical way – whether or not I truly HAVE GOD as “first” in my life? In everyday choices and priorities it is sometimes not so “clear cut” to know. Thanks.