1 Timothy 6:11 But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.

The verse ahead of this, about the love of money, is one of the most famous in the whole Bible, but it is seldom effective to present a negative without a counterbalancing positive. Here, Paul gives Timothy a list of things that are far more valuable, and therefor, more worth pursuing, than money. It’s interesting how much trouble we have internalizing this value system. Somewhere along the line, many people learn to prioritize money, power, and physical pleasure. Actually, physical pleasure is the easiest to understand of those, since even animals will do that, but we are more than just animals. We will never be truly happy until we learn to value the intangibles that Paul lists here. In a way, it’s learning to be like God, because He certainly has no need to pursue wealth. After all, He created everything, just by expressing His will! The things Paul lists here are what God desires in His creatures, the people He created to be His children. There can be no higher value than fulfilling the desires of our Creator.

In my counseling I always tell people that selfishness, self-centeredness, cannot lead to genuine happiness. At best, it leads to momentary pleasure. And when you think about it, even a 100-year lifespan is momentary, compared to eternity! I tell people this, but I’m not completely there myself. I too have moments of focusing on I-my-me-mine, and it never does me any real good. I’m to be a good steward of all the resources God provides, starting with my body and my time, but when those become primary in my thoughts and emotions, I come out on the short end of the stick. I too need to focus on what Paul told Timothy! Yesterday ended up with a big chunk of time used for something I wasn’t anticipating when I got up, but it was very productive, and the day as a whole went very well. As Jesus famously told us in Matthew 6:33, I too need to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness!” Seeking indicates values; we don’t seek what we don’t value. I need to value my Lord and everything He represents more than I value the whole world and all that it contains. That’s easy to say, but not so easy to do. However, by His grace it’s possible, so I’m to rest, relax, and rejoice in Him, valuing and delighting in Him and His kingdom, for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You indeed for the productive day yesterday. Help me recognize and follow Your plans for each day, keeping my values straight, so that You may be pleased as Your will is done in and through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!