Keeping God at the forefront of your life

God should be at the top of your priorities, but in reality, keeping your relationship with God prioritized above everything else isn't an easy task. Life distracts us, our schedules get busy, and before you know it, you missed a few days of your daily devotional plan, you haven't spent time in the Bible in a few days, and you didn't go to Church on Sunday because you left a school project to be done at the last minute. Maybe you stopped listening for God's voice altogether without even realizing it. Maybe you fell asleep in your faith and are living as a lukewarm Christian. Maybe God called out to you by hinting to you or plain out urging you that you need to be spending more time developing your relationship with Him. Whatever your situation is with your faith and relationship with God, whether you're on fire for Him or are living your life as a passive-Christian, it doesn't change the fact that there is always room for your relationship with God to grow. Your relationship with God is a continuous process and can be developed day after day, month after month, and year after year. If you choose to grow your relationship with God, you'll notice that it's necessary for God to be at the forefront of everything you do, at the forefront of your life, at all times. You can't box God into certain aspects and time frames of your life and still be able to simultaneously live out His plan for your life. You have to let God work through your whole life, not just Sundays and Wednesday nights at Church, and not just boxing Him into the daily devotional time you set aside. It's great to set aside time to develop your relationship with God, but a problem comes when that's the only time you're pursuing a relationship with God. Relationships take work, especially a relationship with God. You don't limit your relationship with your close friends to twenty minutes a day, so why should God only have access to you during the small window of time you carved out of your busy schedule when you give other people so much more of your time and effort? He shouldn't. God can work through every aspect of your life, especially beyond the time-windows and places you expect Him to work. Carving out that window of quiet time and devotionals is a great way to develop your relationship with God. Being still and allowing God to speak to you through His Word will grow your relationship with Him. Beyond the window, it can be hard to always put God first. The biggest thing that can help with putting Him first is understanding your motives behind anything you do. Ask yourself, "Are the reasons why I'm doing this pleasing to God?" You can carry out ministry, serve others, and do great things, but if you're only doing it for your own benefit, or required service hours, over doing it for the Glory of God, then your motives aren't pleasing to God and your heart's in the wrong place. By adjusting your motives to be pleasing to God, your life will change drastically and your relationship with God will continue to grow. Even at events like a sports practice or competition, you can ask God to help you throughout the practice or competition. You can pray over your teammates, on and off the court, track, fields, trails, wherever. There’s always a way to put God at the front and center of a situation.