“But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you”   (Matthew 6:33).

See how the Bible opens: “In the beginning God.” Let your life open in the same way. Seek with your whole soul, first and foremost, the kingdom of God, as the place of your citizenship, and His righteousness as the character of your life. As for the rest, it will come from the LORD Himself without your being anxious concerning it. All that is needful for this life and godliness “shall be added unto you.” What a promise this is! Food, raiment, home, and so forth, God undertakes to add to you while you seek Him. You mind His business, and He will mind yours.—– He who is an heir of salvation shall not die of starvation; and he who clothes his soul with the righteousness of God cannot be left of the LORD with a naked body. Away with carping care. Set all your mind upon seeking the LORD. Covetousness is poverty, and anxiety is misery: trust in God is an estate, and likeness of God is a heavenly inheritance. LORD, I seek Thee; be found of me.

(From Faith’s Checkbook)

“–we faint not–While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen–” (2 Cor. 5:16,18)

The ancient Chinese had a unique mechanism for presenting their plays. They would present a play on a two-level stage. On the upper stage, the resolution of the drama was acted out as the story unfolded below. So as tension and mystery were building on the first level, the audience watching the resolution of the plot would yell to the people on the first level, “Hang in there! Don’t give up! If you only knew!” What inspired that hope? It was the knowledge of what was happening on the second level.

Joseph M. Stowell recalls this special event:

“I will never forget the 1980 Olympics hockey match between the U.S. team—composed of small, young, amateur players—and the Soviets. During the final period, I was literally on the edge of my seat. I felt all the agony and anxiety of the contest as I watched it on television—and then suddenly we scored to go ahead late in the game! Can we hang on? I was tense, nervous, and traumatized. Our team went on to win, and at last I was ecstatic.

“Later that night, the network broadcast a replay of the game, so I invited some friends over to watch it. I watched the same game again, but was I on the edge of my seat? Of course not. I sat back, propped up my feet, had a bowl of popcorn, and leisurely sipped a cola. I was watching the very same game—but what I knew about the outcome made a radical difference in my attitude and actions.”

Dear friend, fret not over the conditions of this wicked world—I’ve read the last chapter or the Bible, and we win.Think about it!

There is a story told about Sam Rayburn who was Speaker for the House of Representatives longer than any other man. One of his friends lost a teenage daughter and early the next morning Rayburn knocked on his door. “I just came by to see what I could do to help.” The father replied that there was nothing to do. “Well,” Rayburn said, “have you had your coffee this morning?” The man replied that they had not taken time for breakfast. While Rayburn was working in the kitchen, the man came in and said, “Mr. Speaker, I thought you were supposed to be having breakfast at the White House this morning.” “Well, I was, but I called the President and told him I had a friend who was in trouble and I could not come.”

What a different world this would be if we would learn to become more and more unselfish.

                                         Those who care do!