Kingdoms of Kingdoms of Kingdoms

There are many kingdoms on this earth.  There is the plant kingdom and the animal kingdom.  There are kingdoms within kingdoms.  There are man-made kingdoms and then there is THE Kingdom of God.

Each and every day we go from kingdom to kingdom...from the kingdom called work to the kingdom of the grocery store to the kingdom of the gas station to the kingdom of soccer practice and on and on and on.  When we think about it, everything is a kingdom of some sort.

Even within ourselves are many kingdoms.  The kingdom of our heart.  The kingdom of our mind.  The kingdom of our emotions and the kingdom of our body.  We call ourselves the master of our own destiny meaning we have set ourselves up as the king of self.

It doesn't stop there.  Little girls live in kingdoms from the time they are first introduced to princess books.  They are simply rulers in training.  They prance around in beautiful gowns and wear their tiaras...carry their scepters.  They are called by The King of the Castle, "My little Princess". 

So, you see, there is really no way of getting around the fact that we live in multiple kingdoms each and every day.  Some of the kingdoms are good enough while others like raiding Huns seek to oppress everything and everyone in their kingdom.  They attack the kingdom of our minds, our wills, our bodies and even our spirits.  If we do not have THE KING of KINGS ruling and reigning within, we can succumb to the tyranny of other kingdoms.

It is no wonder we are are to seek the Kingdom of God first.  Why?  Because His kingdom is for good and not evil.  His kingdom rules over all anyway, so we might as well seek Him first!  His Kingdom holds everything together.  His Kingdom rules gravity and day and night.  His Kingdom can give us His very mind and heart.  His Kingdom can make us whole.  His Kingdom even gives us the weapons to run other kingdoms off with their tails tucked in terror.  His Kingdom is crowned with love, joy and peace.  Every other kingdom really looks like crap when you live in His Kingdom.  Paul said it like this...

Philippians 3:8

"Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I've dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by him. I didn't want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God's righteousness." (The Message)

So, here is the choice we have each day.  May we live in His Kingdom First!