But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Matthew 6:33 (NKJV)
When you pursue something at the expense of everything else in your life, it becomes your god. In fact, whatever you put in that first place makes your decisions for you.
For example, if you put your career first, you’ll work instead of choosing family or church. If a shift becomes available but it conflicts with a church or family event, your decision is made. You’ll choose work because it holds the first-place position in your life.
If you prioritize pleasure, you’ll choose what gives you immediate gratification instead of thinking of others. The problem is that pleasure makes a terrible god. It will always destroy you if you put it first.
However, this doesn’t mean that you can’t have pleasure or a successful career. You can have them, but God designed success and pleasure to follow you, not the other way around. Actually, pleasure and success will follow you in a beautiful way if you put God’s Kingdom first in your life.
Jesus says that if we put His Kingdom first, everything we need will be given to us as well. But what does it mean to put God’s Kingdom first? Well, God expands His Kingdom by adding members to it. He loves the world and wants everyone to come into relationship with Him, and if we love God, that means we choose to love what He loves.
Today, take some time to meditate on this thought. God loves the world (John 3:16) and He’s not willing that any person would perish without knowing Him (2 Peter 3:9). How can you love what He loves more?