Seize the Moment – Day 549
First Things First!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, September 17.
When you plan out your calendar, how do you protect first things first?
For example, if you asked me to meet with you on December 25, I hope you would fully expect me to say, “no.” Why? Because that day is Christmas. We protect that day to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ and remember God’s gift of salvation.
For the ancients, the Levitical Law gave them direction on how to protect first things first on their annual calendar. Leviticus 23 clearly lays out their holy days:
- The Passover (5).
- The Feast of Unleavened Bread (6-8).
- The Feast of First Fruits (9-14).
- The Feast of Weeks, later known as Pentecost (15-22).
- The Feast of Trumpets (23-25).
- The Day of Atonement (26-32).
- The Feast of Booths or Tabernacles (33-43).
Listen to the LORD introduce these seven holidays in verses 2-4:
The Lord’s appointed times which you shall proclaim as holy convocations—My appointed times are these: For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, a holy convocation. You shall not do any work; it is a sabbath to the Lord in all your dwellings. These are the appointed times of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them.
Did you notice that the annual calendar was built upon a weekly rhythm of work and rest that flowed out of God’s gracious gift of sabbath?
As busy and productive Americans, we must learn from God’s rhythms of grace. Not only did the LORD designate times of remembrance and celebration throughout the annual calendar, but He also instituted a protected day off every week. Until we realize that rest is God’s idea for our good and His glory we will continue to live in the tyranny of the urgent.
Seize the moment and protect first things first on your calendar today. This is a habit of grace because your life rhythms matter to God!