Becoming a First Responder for God

By:  Dale Weckbacher

Matthew 6:33

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

(ESV)

I am thankful for first responders and pray for their protection.  These are a special breed of individuals that run into danger when most of us are doing everything we can to run from it.  I am sure those reading this who have had any type of emergency in their lives will share my thankfulness and pray for these special individuals as well.  My challenge to those reading this is to ask what their first response is when facing some challenge in life for it is this first response that tells us what we treasure in our hearts. 

First responders must go through rigorous training to perform their duties.  This training is designed to make their unnatural response to a dangerous situation one of facing it head on instead of running from it.  Likewise, we as followers of Christ must learn to make seeking God our first response when facing the challenges of life instead of our fleshly natural response of worry and panic.  To accomplish this we must,

1)      Seek God first (Matthew 6:33) – Most of us that profess Jesus as our savior are quick to declare we will seek God when facing a challenge in life but when we find ourselves in the middle of some calamity, our natural response is one of panic and worry.  The context of Matthew 6:33 is Jesus’ sermon on the mount.  The full context contained in Matthew 6:25-34 is Jesus reminding us not to be anxious or to worry about what is occurring in our lives.  While this is easier said than done, Jesus does provide a visual picture allowing those listening to him to have something to fall back on when worry overtakes our thoughts.  If you are now overcome with worry, I encourage you to pause and picture the little sparrows finding food in the fields that their creator has provided for them.  Imagine the beauty of the wildflowers clothed in what their creator has provided.  God sent His Only Son to die for our sins demonstrating His great love for us.  Therefore, why should I worry because my God will supply all that I need (Philippians 4:19).

2)      Trust God Fully (1 Peter 5:6-7) – Once we seek God to provide for our needs and present our needs to Him, do not take them back.  We would not think twice about taking back a gift we give to someone so why would we take back something we have given to God for to do so only demonstrates a total lack of trust in God.  After seeking God, we must take the next step and totally trust God to meet that need just as he meets the needs of the sparrows in the field and clothes the flowers.  This once again is easy to say and since there is usually a waiting period between the time we seek God and make our petition to him and the receipt of our answer, we must demonstrate total trust in God by not taking back what we have given him but wait for it is in the waiting that we are strengthened (Isaiah 40:31).  When we take back the petition we have presented to God, we are seeking something other than God and demonstrating a lack of seeking God first and resorting to trusting something else (i.e. our own abilities or some worldly provision) and not God.

3)      Share what God has done – Prior to His ascension to be with His Father, Jesus told his followers that they would receive power to be His witnesses when the Holy Spirit came upon them.  While actively sharing the Gospel with the lost is part of being a witness, our greatest witness is in how we live our lives.  When we live lives seeking God first and learn to fully trust Him, we open the door for God to work miracles in our lives.  Those that do not know Christ also have needs in their lives and without God in their lives are seeking answers to their needs elsewhere.  Whatever they are seeking as an answer to their needs will ultimately disappoint them.  Therefore, it is imperative for us that know Christ to seek Him to meet our needs, trust Him fully, and thus show what Jesus can do.  While some may still reject what they see Jesus doing in our lives, we are planting seeds and must trust the Holy Spirit to water and nourish these seeds.

Being a first responder for Christ involves seeking, trusting, and sharing (STS).  A world in chaos needs first responders for Christ to come to its aide.  Just as emergency first responders fearlessly enter danger, our world needs first responders for Christ that fearlessly engage using STS, demonstrating how the answer to whatever anyone needs is found in Jesus Christ. 

I encourage everyone reading this to become a first responder for Christ by learning to seek God, Trust Him to meet their needs, and actively sharing what Jesus has done in our lives under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.  Will you join me in this endeavor?