When Good Things Become the Wrong Things: A Reflection on Priorities
As many of us will make plans and resolutions today, I think it would help if we took inventory of our priorities as we make them.
Most of us don’t wake up intending to live with the wrong priorities. In fact, that’s what makes misplaced priorities so dangerous—they’re usually built around good things. Work. Family. Relationships, Ministry. Responsibility. Productivity. Even rest. But good things, when elevated to ultimate things, slowly begin to crowd out what matters most.
The Subtle Drift
Wrong priorities rarely announce themselves loudly. They creep in quietly.You start by skipping prayer because you’re busy serving God.You neglect rest because you’re trying to be faithful.You prioritize output over intimacy, achievement over obedience, urgency over presence.Before long, your calendar is full—but your soul feels thin.Jesus warned about this subtle drift when He said we can gain the whole world and still lose our soul. The issue isn’t that we’re doing bad things—it’s that we’re doing too many lesser things at the expense of the best thing.
Activity Is Not the Same as Alignment
Busyness is often celebrated in our culture—and sadly, even in church culture. We praise packed schedules, nonstop productivity, and constant motion. But Scripture never equates busyness with faithfulness.Alignment matters more than activity.You can be moving fast and still be going the wrong direction.You can be serving passionately and still be spiritually dry.You can be doing God’s work while neglecting God’s presence.Wrong priorities don’t always pull us away from God—they often distract us around Him.
The Cost of Misplaced Priorities
When our priorities are off, the effects show up everywhere:
- Emotionally: chronic frustration, anxiety, burnout
- Relationally: short tempers, shallow conversations, distracted love
- Spiritually: prayer becomes mechanical, Scripture feels distant, joy fades
We begin to live reactive lives instead of intentional ones—responding to the loudest demand instead of the deepest calling.
Reordering the Heart
God is not asking us to do more. He’s inviting us to do what matters first.Jesus said to seek first the Kingdom of God—not after everything else is handled, not when life slows down, but first. Priorities are not revealed by what we value but by what we schedule, protect, and return to.Sometimes the most spiritual thing we can do is pause long enough to ask:
- What is currently shaping my days?
- What gets my best energy?
- What gets what’s left?
Choosing the Better Portion
In Scripture, when Martha was busy doing many good things, Mary chose the better thing—sitting at Jesus’ feet. Jesus didn’t shame Martha’s service; He simply pointed out that her priorities were costing her peace.The same invitation stands before us today.Slow down.Simplify.Realign.Not because everything else doesn’t matter—but because nothing else matters more.
A Final Thought
Right priorities don’t make life easier—but they make it lighter. They anchor us in what lasts. They free us from the tyranny of urgency. They remind us that our worth is not found in what we accomplish, but in who we belong to. May we have the courage to let go of good things when they compete with God—and the wisdom to choose the better portion again.