It is so easy for us to say that God is first in our life.

Most Christians say it, and it sounds very "holy" and good. But there is a very sobering Scripture that says, "By their fruit you will know them" (Matt. 7:16). In other words, if you mean what you say, your actions will show it.

So many people complain that God has stopped speaking to them. I hear things like this all the time: "Somehow, the heavens are like brass. My prayers don't seem to go higher than the ceiling. I just don't hear from God like I used to ... my prayer life is so dry and barren." In a recent message in City Harvest Church, Singapore, Kong Hee made a very astute observation in this regard: "If you're not hearing God speak to you any more, then most likely that you didn't obey Him the last time He did speak to you!"

God Is Always Speaking

God is always speaking to us. His Word confirms that over and over. It tells us that we will hear a voice behind us saying, "This is the way—walk in it" (Is. 30:21). If we cannot hear Him, it is because we are not listening. We are either too busy, or we are letting other voices crowd out the "still, small voice" of God. God rarely shouts and competes with other voices for your attention. If He is first in your life, then you WILL hear Him.

This sequence of thoughts came to me recently during my early morning prayer and Bible reading, while I was reading and meditating in the book of Psalms. I came across Psalm 5:3, and it stopped me in my tracks: "In the MORNING, O Lord, You hear my voice; in the MORNING I lay my request before You and wait in expectation." Psalm 5 ends like this: "For surely, O Lord You bless the righteous; You surround them with Your favor as with a shield."

The references in particular to the morning resonated with me; maybe because that is the way I have always done it. The Bible talks much of giving God our first and best—our "firstfruits." I believe that in a very real sense, the "firstfruits" of our time is the first part of each day.

What Is Your Priority?

In the morning, we are fresh; without the details and pressures of the day crowding in. We can be alone with God and hear Him speak clearly and unambiguously.

It is a matter of priorities. What is your priority? Is it really God (as I am sure you say it is)? Or is it an extra hour of sleep, the morning newspaper, an early start on your e-mails, or whatever? It is a choice, and choices have consequences.

If you choose not to give God the first and best part of your day, then the consequence may well be that you are not hearing God speak to you the way He used to. "Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You" (Ps. 143:8).

In the Gospels, we read time and again how Jesus rose up early, often before the light of day, to pray and seek fellowship with His Father. If it was good enough for Jesus, it should be good enough for us!

I hear the objection already: "I'm just not a morning person ... I'm at my best at night." Fine. If that is true—if the night is your "first and best"—then give that to God. But be honest. That means not placing God in competition with other members of the family, the TV, phone calls, the Internet, etc. If you are serious about God, then get serious with God.

Paul J. Meyer, in his book Unlocking Your Legacy puts it this way: "Priorities are the guardrail that keep you on the road of life ... most people have priorities—the problem is that they don't keep them. 'I'm too busy' really means 'I don't think this is a high priority' ... with your priorities in place, there is nothing in your way to stop you." He then goes on to quote Hei Arita of Japan: "It takes discipline and leadership to set priorities, and do what is most important first."

If seeking God and fellowshipping with Him is "most important" to you, then it will indeed take discipline and leadership to make that the priority in your life. Not "a" priority, to be fitted in among the other priorities, but "the" priority—the first and the best part of each and every day for the most important Person in your life: Jesus Christ.