FIRST THING FIRST

Deut. 28:46-48  They will be a sign and a wonder to you and your descendants forever. ⁴⁷ Because you did not serve the LORD your God joyfully and gladly in the time of prosperity, ⁴⁸ therefore in hunger and thirst, in nakedness and dire poverty, you will serve the enemies the LORD sends against you. He will put an iron yoke on your neck until he has destroyed you.

Check out this pic....you have a couple of oxen, in a yoke, being driven by their master with an instrument called and ox goad ( a stick, or staff with a sharp end to stick into your skin to encourage you to work harder, faster).   This doesn't look fun, and I'm sure if the oxen could talk they'd confirm that this is not real living for them.   Today's scripture is an excerpt out of Deuteronomy when GOD lays out blessings (from choosing to keep His commandments & serve Him) as well as curses, and I'm sure you realize that today's passage is about being cursed.   But the question is WHO ARE YOU SERVING TODAY?    If you attitude is sour about getting up to go to work, or about dealing with your family members during the holiday, or going shopping for Christmas gifts....then apparently YOU ARE NOT SERVING LORD, and therefore you are serving the enemies which is why you have the burden (the iron yoke) and those very people are driving you.

GOD desires that we'd FIRST LOVE THE LORD THY GOD WITH ALL OF OUR HEART, ALL OF OUR SOUL........so your purpose in going to work should be to SERVE HIM & SHOW YOUR LOVE FOR HIM THERE through how you treat His people.    Your purpose in spending time with you family.....to show & share with them the LOVE of JESUS CHRIST.   I pray & hope your purpose in HOW you celebrate CHRISTMAS isn't polluted or so dilluted by the presents that they are left with the JOY of JESUS, not the happiness of the happenings of what you were able to score at the store.  As titled first THING first, J.O.Y. is about representing & serving JESUS first.....I pray you communicate this how you live out this day......cause if you don't you may very well be the oxen in this pic, or the people experiencing the IRON YOKE promised in this scripture.  LGLP