Do a Kingdom Cost-Benefit Analysis, Plus Stay Current and Upgraded with Jesus (May 26, 2023)

Friday, May 26, 2023

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Kingdom Cost-Benefit Analysis

Let's accept our humanity, shall we? Our mental-emotional-energy-time bandwidth is not infinite ...

Einstein-level insight, right?

We have to sacrifice things to get or do other things. Another way to say this might be we sacrifice something in the present to get something in the future.

A cost–benefit analysis is simply an approach to estimating the strengths and weaknesses of alternatives.

Let’s see what the Brilliant One said …

"If we seek first the Kingdom of God (his rein) and His righteousness (his way of being and doing right), things that the marauding hordes are hounding will be added to us."

Paraphrased a little there.

It doesn’t mean we don’t apply ourselves at all to the things we need and that God wants to bring into our lives. It just we’re smarter about it and God adds his blessing and speed.

And that makes all the difference.

How can we make this practical? Let’s start with the Word and Prayer. Because everything, and I mean everything flows from that downstream.

If we truly give ourselves to the Word and Prayer (it takes time and energy), we will have to give up or at least limit other things like media, entertainment, and possibly even too much relational time.

I know that last one can sound hard. Especially to the Hallmark Mob. I’m kinda smiling on the inside.

At times we may even give up eating. "Sweet Jesus, make haste to help me!"

Or even marital sex for a season of consecration. “In the name of King Jesus, get behind me, Satan!”

But see the beginning of that marriage chapter, 1 Corinthians 7 if you dare for Paul's teaching on consecrated prayer in family life.

All of this is a dynamic of leverage. And it’s a trust issue too.

As we begin to release control and compulsion, we begin to sense peace and we start experiencing the harvest.

And can I say this? This present Evil Age is winding down. The rulers of this world are already on the way out!

The fulness of the Kingdom of God is brimming on the horizon, like the glow of a gorgeous, eternal sunrise.

Now is the time to prioritize and organize our lives in a way that is worthy of King Jesus and what’s about to go down!

There are many ways to apply this. Reflect on it. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you.

See sacrifice as a harvest dynamic and multiplier as you move forward.

Insights & Trends

O for a Thousand Tongues of Fire (Christianity) Sunday, May 28 is Pentecost Sunday. The Spirit’s descent at Pentecost is a model for diverse and distributed leadership.

Live the Pareto Principle lifestyle:

• Relationships. Who are the few people that have the most positive impact on my life? Spend more time with them.
• Priorities. What are the few actions that have the most positive impact on my day? Prioritize them.
• Learning. What are the few information sources I learn the most from? Focus on them.
• Stress. What are the few sources that cause most of the stress and friction in my life? Eliminate them.” (Source: James Clear)

Note that in Jesus' Parable of the Sower, only 1 in 4 soils produced a harvest (25%). And in that soil there were varying degrees of return ... 30, 60, and 100-fold (10,000 %).

Doubt & Faith: Top Reasons People Question Christianity (Barna) Recent data show a majority in America is open to tapping more deeply into their spiritual life—yet this curiosity may naturally be accompanied by tough questions. Are churches making space for this reality?

Getting current with Christ, walking in the Spirit (Ep 278)

Listen on JesusSmart.com    Apple    Spotify    Other options

Conversion to Christ is a pivot to Eden. Even now, we can learn to walk with Christ in the "cool of the day." One day, everything will be renewed.

Your potential is to stay Updated and Upgraded with Christ. We quest to keep in step with the Lord ... everything in our lives can be infused with the Holy Spirit's intelligence and energy.

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Appreciate you. Until next time.

Brian Del Turco