things that really matter

I'm a normal Buckeye fan, though I hold myself back, most of the time (exception: that brief time once a year), because I know I get sucked up into the swirl of the hype and mania that come with that, too easily. Today is the biggest regular season game between (#2 ranked) Michigan and (#1 ranked) Ohio State in the history of this fabled rivalry.

And, as we all sadly know, Coach Bo Schembechler passed away yesterday. We grieve with others, and lament his loss to the football world. And we stop dead in our tracks, and realize that there is more to life than just this game. But I'm sure Michigan players, today, will want to go all out, all the more to honor Bo with a big victory. And both teams will want to live up to the hype of what this rivalry is all about, and both will, regardless of the outcome.

Things that really matter are right down to earth where we live. They include personal issues we're working on, such as attitudes we know do not measure up to Christ. Starting at home, and working out into all the places and people our lives touch daily.

I have to keep working on this. Seeking to see my struggles or deficiencies as opportunities to grow, in learning to make and keep first things first.

What I find frustrating, is the fact that I still struggle in some areas. Though as I seriously look at them, I can see real growth over the years. But I have to realize that our pressing on towards the goal of the prize of the high calling of God, in Christ Jesus, is ongoing. We're in it together, but each of us must be seriously engaged in it, and help one another to do the same.

Well, good luck to all in the big game, and all the games today. May we be an example, as those in the Jesus community, of what it means, in all things, to keep first things first, and hold on to the things that really matter.

What are your thoughts and/or experience in this, you'd like to share with us?