Deep in the bowels of Exodus, after the fast-paced and often miraculous story of their rescue from Egypt, I found this little gem this morning. "The best of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God." Literally sandwiched between not mingling the blood of the sacrifice with leaven, not letting the fat from the feast remain overnight, and not boiling a young goat in its mother's milk. (Who says the Bible isn't interesting! Ha!) Usually, I will confess, I tend to speed read through these sections but this morning, I was caught short. And I began to ponder what it would mean for me in this New Year to bring the "firstfruits" of my life to the Lord?
My first thought was my children. I love my children. I have four of them. Watching them grow into young men and women is literally the greatest and scariest adventure of my life. Almost all of them are teenagers now. Seventeen. Fourteen. Twins that are ten. They all have their ups and downs. It's been fun to watch them discover their talents and passions. It's also been heartbreaking to watch them suffer disappointment or discouragement along the way. I find myself lifted up or down depending on the day they've had. I love them fiercely. I am almost embarrassingly proud of them. So what does it mean to offer them to the Lord?
My second thought was my wife. This in itself is a problem. She should come before my children at the very least. She is my best friend. My partner in ministry. And in so many ways, my spiritual hero. We have been married for twenty years this year. Been together over half of our lives. Every time I get into bed beside her each night I thank God because she is by far the greatest gift I have ever received. Kristi and I were talking the other night about the secret to having a great marriage. Because of what I do for a living, we know a lot of folks who are struggling in their marriages and it kills us to watch it happen. Marriage has not been easy for us. When we first got together, Kristi was in therapy. And once we started dating and got engaged, her therapist told us - in her professional opinion and that of her psychiatrist husband - we were not good for each other. Ouch! (They are dear friends to this day by the way...) So there was a lot stacked against us. What made the difference? Why after twenty years do we have a great marriage? The only thing we could come up with is that we love Jesus first. Period. We aren't smarter than anyone else. Or just lucky. (No one lucks into a great marriage!) We simply bring the "firstfruits" of our relationship to the Lord.
Then I thought about my work. I love what I do. I would do it for free. (Don't tell my church that...) I serve a wonderful, opinionated, stubborn, passionate, sinful group of folks called a "church" who are on this journey of seeking Jesus together. I also get to teach the next generation of pastors at Denver Seminary. I also get to serve my tribe (Read: denomination) in a variety of capacities beyond my job as a senior pastor. Finally, I get the privilege of speaking/training/teaching internationally over in Ethiopia, training pastors and church planters from over 50 denominations. It is busy. It is fun. It often leaves me exhausted at the end of the day. And I ponder...what does it mean for me to bring the "firstfruits" of this work to the Lord?
All of this may sound strange coming from a pastor. After all, aren't I supposed to be a professional at this? Don't I get paid to put Jesus first? One would think...and one would be wrong. I am simply a guy who got ambushed by Jesus over twenty years ago on the campus of the University of Colorado. And I am still working out the details. It's a lifelong process. You don't learn it in school. You don't naturally fall into it in life. Putting Jesus first requires an almost relentless intentionality that is not easy. If you aren't careful - as I haven't been careful these last several months - life starts to run you rather than you running your life. And when that begins to happen, God gets the leftovers.
So let me share with you one adjustment I've made for 2016. I am trying to be intentional about the "next thing." Whatever it may be. Getting kids up in the morning. My "to-do" list at work. Cooking dinner. Nightly chores. Spending time with my wife. Attending an event for one of my children. Whatever it may be, I am trying to enter that space intentionally conscious that Jesus is with me. He loves what I'm doing and wants to be involved. He is there to guide and direct me. And as I become more sensitive to His Presence, I find myself more sensitive to the needs of those around me. My family. My colleagues. My friends. Even myself. This awareness keeps me from just going through the motions of life.
One of my favorite authors once wrote, "The most commanding thing I've learned is just to relish the taste and tang of life with the immemorial figure of a Galilean in the center of it, waging his hungry, stubborn hopes." I love the life I've been giving, busy as it is. I love all I get to do each day. And I don't believe God wants me to change what I'm doing so much as offer Him the "firstfruits" of all I do. To invite Him to be part of it with me. To see Him at the center of everything bringing joy and comfort and peace and passion to all I say and do.