Now that we understand the need for a firm foundation and have established it in the Word of God we are ready to unearth the rest of our pyramid of priorities.
The “step pyramid” of Djores was built one level on top of another … imagine building a big square one story warehouse … it is structurally complete and fully operational. Then, after a while you need more space and build another square warehouse, a little smaller than the first level on top of that one … and then another slightly smaller on top of that … up through six stories … that was how this particular monument was built.
The pyramid was built one level on top of the other … the previous level had to be complete and solid before the next level was added. Again another lesson for us … as we begin to unpack the pyramid of priorities the first level has to be well established in order to support the mounting levels to follow. (Remember all of this was built on a massive stone foundation!)
Our first level of priority is our walk with God … Paul says in Ephesians 4 that we are to walk in a manner worthy of the call that God has placed on our lives as Christians. Our walk with God, the first story or our ‘pyramid of priorities’ rests firmly on the Word of God our massive foundation of God’s truth. We learn all we need to know about God and how to walk with Him in the pages of His “How to have a relationship with Me Book.”
We see in Ephesians 4 that our walks with God are the practical ways we live our lives. The way we love each other, the way we do our work … all need to lived out so that people can see that we are God’s special children. Read those verses and see how you’re walking ….
Archeologists tell us that thousands of pyramids were built throughout Egypt … yet only a fraction of them stand today. Why do a few remain standing while others crumbled in the desert throughout the storms of time? Those scientists say the difference was foundations. The pyramids built on massive stone foundations are the ones that have stood tall for thousands of years. This discovery was made because they excavated these historical sites.
This archeological fact unearths another powerful lesson for us. If our lives are not built on a solid, well laid foundation … they are destined to fall … they will crumble … our legacies will blow away in the desert winds. That is why we call our ministry House on the Rock Family Ministries! We want to help families build their lives and homes on the “Rock.” So the first priority in our pyramid of priorities is foundational and vital.
The pyramid of priorities was derived from the inspired progression of thoughts of Paul in the letter he wrote to the church in Ephesus. The first part of the letter (chapters 1-3) deals with ‘who we are’ in Jesus Christ … the second half of the letter (chapters 4-6) unpacks the ‘so what … how should we live?’
The foundation to our “Pyramid of Priorities” is built upon the inspiration of these words and thoughts by God’s Holy Spirit … who inspired Paul to write them in an orderly progression. I believe that the order in which God inspired these words and thoughts is extremely significant in that they are His list of priorities in how we should live our lives as Christians. It is the building of our lives on God’s inspired (the unseen) Word (the seen) that will cause our lives and legacies to stand the storms of time.
The Words of God given through the Bible are the foundation upon which all of us as Christ followers need to build our lives to stand the storms of time.
April 7th …
Every culture is fascinated by pyramids … whether Egyptian or Mayan. If they didn’t stand today in their own defense … we would deem them impossible for ancient engineers and contractors to design and build such massive structures thousands of years ago. That’s why the Great Pyramid is one of the 7 Wonders of the World!
But I look at pyramids from a different angle. Because they were built as eternal monuments to the persons they entombed, they were imagined, designed, and constructed while that individual was still living his or her life. It took builders over 30 years to construct the larger pyramids … that was just about the lifespan of the future occupant. That must have been just a little eerie … seeing your own tomb/monument being built before your very eyes!
Yet the similarities are very sobering … we are building monuments too … our lives will leave a legacy for our children and their children’s children. So … we need to be thinking and planning carefully as to how we’re building those legacies … those monuments pointing our ancestors heavenward. It will take us a lifetime to build a lasting godly legacy.
That’s why I call my presentation on priorities the “Pyramid of Priorities” … because our legacies (positive or negative) are built on our choices … and our choices are made based on our priorities. So developing a set of foundational priorities is extremely important.
But there is another reason I have chosen this title … each of the priorities … just like layers of the pyramids … are built one on top of the other. If the foundational layer is not solid … the rest of the structure will crumble …
I spoke to a group of young wives and moms this week … that’s a little unusual for me in that I regularly speak to men’s groups and couples. But I learned that males and females both struggle with priorities … not the choices between good and bad … although we all wrestle with those issues … they rarely tax our taxonomy of more difficult choices categorized as good, better and best. So to get us thinking I presented them with a choice: “Do you go shopping all day with a girl friend who needs to talk and be encouraged … or stay home and do the laundry so your family has something to wear tomorrow?” Neither is a choice between good or evil … but there is an element of good, better, or best choice.
The ladies were chuckling and quickly assured me that they … unlike men … can multi task and that they could easily accomplish both these “good and better” tasks in the course of a day.
So much for my feeble attempt at a moral dilemma <smile>. You see my “blue brain” thinks like a man … we do one thing at a time! Multi tasking is drinking my iced tea while I am driving and listening to a CD … the real main task is driving … the tea and music simply enhances the experience! … anyway … I quickly added another ”choice” to my prioritizing scenario … “and prepare a nice meal for your family who has done fast food all week because of your kids’ hyperactive schedules.” That threw in a little more challenge.
After we discussed the factors and issues surrounding the choices … I presented what I like to call the “Pyramid of Priorities” … based on the ancient writings in the New Testament. We’ll share more of that later …
I am going to try to do better with the blogging … not that anyone is reading … but at least we will have some sort of written history. It is now April … and we have completed one of the busiest seasons ever … that’s great news in that the ministry is growing … it is bad news in that it severely taxes our infrastructure.
I am excited at the potential of marriage mentoring … we just finished training 8 couples who are chomping at the bit to get started … I’ll keep you posted on their progress.
We’re training another group of eight couples this month at another church … this is a fantastic ministry for preventing marital issues as well as for enriching relationships. If you are interested in learning how to be a marriage mentor … or if you are in the Lancaster area and want to be mentored … contact me.
