HOWDY, as we say here in Texas and welcome to the Front Porch…kinda chilly again today…reading right now…a frosty 28 degrees…pour yourself a hot cup and coffee and let’s talk..

As I said yesterday..gonna talk about some words.  Words to help me focus in on what’s important, valuable-to help see things a little more clearly.  Hard sometimes…the focus thing

I wear glasses…have since 8^th grade and probably should have worn them before that,  long story…but I need glasses to see anything in the distance.  Funny thing, until you are told you need glasses, you walk around in a fuzzy kinda world, thinking this is ‘normal” then when you put on those glasses…walaaaa..wow..whew.. as the song states… “I can see clearly now’.

 Now that I am older, I also need those bifocal things for up close…but glasses can be such a nuisance for me especially if I am working outside or cooking or cleaning.  So I just squint to get by. I usually don’t wear them around the house and sometimes just pull the things off and lay them down while I scrub, clean, fold clothes, etc…..  Which can be a big problem later because I do just that, lay them down-sometimes in some of the strangest, most unusual, peculiar places!  Hence, a mad hunt for the glasses when I need them.  Funny, my house always looks so clean without them.  I don’t see the dust, dirt, grime and grit, smudgy doors and windows, cobwebs here and there…interesting.. I’m sure a Freud thing going on there-perhaps.

Which brings me to the ‘ize’ word for today. PRIORITIZE…yep, gonna start Day 1 of 28 days with this big word.  We hear it, use it, strive for it, think we got it and then WAM, BOOM, something happens and we realize ,”nope, don’t have my priorities in order”.  By the way, isn’t that a strange saying?  I liken (and I liken that word) to walking around without my glasses…everything looks pretty good when I ‘look through that glass darkly’ or in other words just can’t, don’t. won’t see all the junk and mess that I am really surrounded with.  Hmmmm. What a difference those glasses make..what a difference the WORD makes!

Thus, the WORD, what a difference the Word makes (notice I said that again!) in our lives, hearts, and souls.  God is so amazing, knew exactly what He was doing when He inspired men to write the Word.  It is simply amazing.  It is simply powerful.  It is simply profound.  I been reading the word for over 50 years (started when I was 2-no… only kidding)…AND it gets more POWERFUL every time I read it!  That is the good news…the not so good news is….I see the dirt, dust, grime, soot, trash, garbage that is in my life, surrounds me in my little corner of the world, our country, and of course the world in general.  The Word is so sharp, ‘ouch’, quick “what was that?”, powerful (wam, bam-straighten up!)….

Just like those glasses, when I pick them up, put them on…I see good things…beauty, people’s faces, road signs (very important)…but also those glasses reveal those dusty shelves, dirty ceiling fans, grime windows, muddy floors, creepy hanging, drooping cobwebs….

The WORD…so the word I want to discuss today is PRIORITIZE….simply put what is important to me, to you”. “What is in your wallet? Your head? Your heart? Your life?"  We can get our priorities (meaning what takes precedence over others…also, what you set aside time for) out of whack..so to speak…and sometimes rightly so….if you need to work extra long, extra hard for a given time to pay bills, feed the kids, TCB, then that is the priority or agenda for that day or period of time.  Our problem is when that stays at the top of the list….money, money, money, or it could be fame, fame, fame, or it could be shame, shame, shame (our current pet sin that fulfills our void, our wallet, our heart, our head, our life).

How can we make sure we have the right priorities?  Hmmm. Make a list and check it twice. Write ‘em down in order of importance (be honest…sometimes we say things like God, Family, Country…..when it is none of the above…it is more liken to the list above, money, fame, shame OR__________________.

God should be at the top of the list…especially if you call yourself a Christian….well… let me rephrase that to say…if you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, you realize His blood was shed for you and it was and is His blood that cleanses you and it is His love that sustains you….think you get the picture!

Soooo, if someone or something is your PRIORITY, write ‘em down in order of importance, set aside time-quality time-for that list of PRIORITIES….those things that should take precedence over ALL others…if God and His will and Word are not up there –close and personal-make it part of your lifestyle living….the Word…it can be so inspiring!  It can be so revealing…it causes us to measure up to HIS standards…not ours, not our neighbors, not our church’s (hey, some churches’ standards….oh well, another day)!

So to make lifestyle living changes –permanent-PRIORITIZE….I think I will end this little conversation on the front porch with a quote….now brace yourself…this is soooo out of character for me…but I am going to quote ….hmmm..clear my throat………are you ready for this?? Oh, well…here goes…and by the way….yep..this is NOT a misprint, NOT a typo, NOT a blooper, NOT a blunder…so here goes.. out of the mouth……………….drum roll please……… of….. Snooki ….. “I’m no one’s OPTION. I’m someone else’s PRIORITY”.  Snicker, Snicker...I can just hear her saying this, popping her gum with her New Jersey twang (sorry Lucy...no offense!).

Think God may say that about the OPTION business.  He should not be, nor should never be anyone’s OPTION… (never heard anyone say.."get my options in order)......hmmm something to think about and something to strive for in 2013..LIFESTYLE LIVING…let’s make sure we make HIM our first Priority.

Well, need to move on..chores to do…suppose to ‘warm’ up to about 45 or so degrees, sun is out and shining…sounds like a heat wave here in Big D!  See ya again tomorrow…on the front porch. Get ready for another word…for lifestyle living.