Finding the Important Amidst the Urgent

I just started leading a Sunday School at my church two weeks ago. Feeling less than confident, never having led a class before, I tentatively agreed and have just started realizing that the following saying is true: God doesn't choose those he equips, he equips those he chooses.

I wanted to share a portion of the study from this week that comes from the Tyranny of the Urgent by Charles Hummel. Basically, the segment of the article is about discerning between the urgent things of life (those things that must be done today, if not right away) and the important (those things with no real timeline for completion). The problem is that because the important things of life rarely have to be completed right away, they are often pushed to the back burner and sacrificed for things with a more immediate need. The article goes on to talk about how Christ never led His life feverishly. He took time to talk with people. He was never rushed. He consulted his Father on everything. He knew his purpose. He warded off the urgent and accomplished the important.

Here is the part that I wanted to document: "Through prayerful meditation on God's Word we gain His perspective... But the root of all sin is self-sufficiency from God. When we fail to wait prayerfully for God's guidance and strength we are saying, with our actions if not our lips, that we do not need him. How much of our service is characterized by 'going it alone'?"

I am starting to realize how much I rely on myself to determine my priorities. In doing so, I am crowding my life to the point where there is little time left for the things that GOD says are important, rather than the things that I say are important. I want to be more disciplined to wait for God's guidance.

I have to believe that in listening to God's direction and priorities, the question of the purpose of life will start to make sense.