One rule for successful living that will keep you in a happy place over and over again, is to never set yourself up for loss.
People do it all the time. They outline material outcomes they want, fail to realize them, and then get depressed over coming up short.
Perhaps they want a promotion and it doesn’t come, or are determined to win a sporting event and lose. Maybe they seek the favor of an acquaintance who has other ideas, work to earn more money and still feel behind, or try to lose weight that seems impossible to get rid of.
There is nothing wrong with getting promoted, winning a sport event, asking a friend for a favor, earning more money or staying fit, but there’s a way to approach these outcomes that always guarantees success. And Jesus Christ taught us how to do it. Seek spiritual gain first and foremost!
He taught, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” Matthew 6:33, NLT.
To seek the “kingdom of God,” is to seek spiritual reality.
In spiritual reality, you are a perfect, whole, complete, provided for being with everything you need to be happy, healthy and fit. There isn’t anything material that can be added to you to make you better off than you already are as a divinely loved child of God.
Yes, we need food and clothes and help from others to live successfully on earth, but as Jesus promised, when you seek the spiritual first, God will give you these things as they are needed.
When we love first; express intelligence, wisdom, helpfulness first; be generous, joyous, and grateful first; demonstrate dominion, discipline, temperance, and spiritual satisfaction first; we will have friends that love us and help us, job opportunities to prove our worth and value, neighbors happy to have us around, and a fit body. The human follows the divine.
There are no limits on how fast you can accept spiritual reality and be blessed by its provisions! No one can deny you the opportunity to grow spiritually and express God better.
Seek the spiritual above all else and prevent setting yourself up for loss.
You can always grow spiritually, you can always become a better person, you can always express more ability, you can always be more useful and you can always find something good to be grateful for. And these spiritual states of mind are what matter most in the long run. They free you from the disappointments of earth and prepare you for the riches and blessings of heaven which are eternally yours to enjoy.
So, with the onset of any new project or endeavor you take up, set spiritual goals from the beginning and reach them. Set yourself up for guaranteed gain. The human need will be appropriately supplied every step of the way.
Such a lovely inspiration. Something that I very much needed today. Whatever may be our human needs, if we are good and seek to do the right things, then all those human needs will be met abundantly. Our heavenly father knows the things which we need, even before we ask Him. “The Divine ear is not an auditory nerve. Its the all hearing, all knowing Mind, to whom each need of man is always known and by whom it will be supplied.”
Thanks so very much Evan.
So clear…thank you Evan!
A very clear explanation. Thank you for sharing!
“The human follows the divine.” Couldn’t be clearer than that. Thanks!
The perfect spiritual way to begin the day carries you all the way!
This covers everything for setting ourselves up for spiritual gain and what could be more important than that, which can solve all of our needs? Thank you Evan
This fall in line with an old saying of mine that I intended for those in my professional experience as an engineering designer and project manager. “You don’t do different things, you do things differently.” Putting God first, puts Him in charge and everyone and everything is touched in the way that their need requires. This is such an important post to help us see what is really important. For me it took quite a while to realize when I was actually doing it and not humanly outlining what I wanted to happen. Big difference! Thank you Evan for such a wonder expression of how doing things differently bring outs successful outcomes by putting God first.
Thanks for this Encouragement, Evan! Maybe that’s what Mrs. Eddy meant when she wrote: “Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need.” But we need to do our part i.e. knowing and acknowledging and expressing this Divine Love, knowing that as God’s child we are worthy and deserving of All of God’s Love and Provision. So many of us don’t really acknowledge and value ourselves as precious ideas of God. We cling to a mortal past, a mortal sense of self and thus don’t feel we are really worthy of receiving all the Good Things that God is constantly sending us. The question is: How do we rid ourselves of the impositions of a past human history and a mortal self? By Knowing the Truth, imbibing it , asking for it, praying for it, studying for it, being willing for it, and then quietly just accepting it! Awakening!!
The universal Law of Cause and Effect beautifully described! Thank you!
“There are no limits on how fast you can accept spiritual reality and be blessed by its provisions! No one can deny you the opportunity to grow spiritually and express God better.” That really cancels the whole victim argument! Well said Evan, as always. Thank you for this post and the rich ideas developed ((:
My new diet and fitness goals: Dominion, Discipline, Temperance, Spiritual satisfaction!