So as most of you know, I just spent the last 9 days on a trip to Nashville. I was looking forward to this trip for months. To meet up with friends, to take pictures of the city, and simply to get away from home for awhile.

This trip was literally the exact opposite of what I had planned. Every plan I had completely fell apart. I had a couple spasms a day towards the end of the trip from my illness which left me in pain, irritable, and angry. I was exhausted. I was genuinely feeling like I was falling back into depression. I can’t even tell you the amount of times I cried because of the depression that hit me out of nowhere for no reason. Things were so rough. I haven’t felt so beaten down in years.

It wasn’t until the way home today when I realized why all of these attacks were coming against me; I wasn’t prioritizing my relationship with God.

I read my bible on the way to Nashville and that was the last time I even touched it until a couple hours ago. I couldn’t even remember the last time I prayed or just simply thanked God for His goodness.

I entered into this trip imagining all of the people I would be a light to and tell them about Jesus hoping they would accept Him in that very moment, but that’s the exact opposite of what happened.

Prioritizing time with the Lord is so important and so necessary for your own spiritual growth. It makes me cringe how many opportunities I could’ve had to lead people to Jesus if only I made Him a priority through this trip.

It’s easy at home because I’m at my church surrounded by Godly people usually every day of the week. I have people to push me and encourage my spiritual growth. But the moment I was on my own – I failed. I failed miserably. I feel so unworthy. So undeserving. I can’t believe God gave me this incredible opportunity and I didn’t take it.

If Jesus was able to prioritize my life through His death, why can’t I prioritize His death through my life?

But the absolutely wonderful thing about God that I will never be able to comprehend is: His grace is endless. It covers all mistakes. All failures. All mistakes. I may look at myself as a failure because of this, but He still looks at me as a winner simply because that’s the kind of God He is; He chooses to see nothing but the best in us. In the midst of our selfishness, He still sees the goodness of our hearts.

The moment you start prioritizing your relationship with God is the moment your life will start making sense.

Not only read your bible, know it. Understand it. Be in prayer non-stop. Grasp onto His love through every situation. Every moment. Who knows, a day may be coming where you will be persecuted for your faith and you will be so sorry you didn’t take the time when you had the chance. The Word is not something that should be taken for granted, whatsoever.

Be intentional with your time. If you have the time on your hands to be reading this blog post I’m writing right now, you have time to be reading the Word. It’s not a chore. It’s a necessity. And once you stop treating it as a chore and treat is as the Word of the living God who is alive and active in you, your life will miraculously fall together in a way you never expected. It leads to love. To life. To joy. To hope. It leads to a better understanding of Christ and that leads to becoming more like Christ.

Instead of checking your phone the second you wake up, thank the Lord for another day. Your time on this earth is so limited. Why spend time on something the world has to offer rather than on something the Kingdom has to offer? I promise – you will grow excessively if you do this.

Choose Him. Choose His goodness. Choose His Kingdom.

Use your time furthering His Kingdom rather than furthering yourself. Likes? Who cares. Followers? Who cares. You were not created to get likes and die. You were not created to get followers and die.

You were not created to make yourself famous. You were created to make Jesus famous.

God is such a gentleman. He sit backs and wait for you to spend time with Him; He will never force Himself upon you. It’s your choice. Don’t make Him wait any longer. He desperately and endlessly wants to spend time with you!

Let 2017 be the year you finally prioritize your relationship with Jesus Christ. He prioritizes you. Every single day.

Don’t just make Him number one on your list, make Him your list.

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” // Matthew 6:33