I was at the gym the other day talking to the owner, Brian and a staff member, Kate, after my workout. We were discussing some new exercises and nutrition. Brian mentioned that I didn’t need to worry so much about the order of the exercises. Kate abruptly cut in and said, “Brian, this is Rhonda. She’s O.C.D. She has a spreadsheet for her workouts.” Doesn’t everyone?
While I don’t know if I am clinically O.C.D., I am certainly very organized and like things done in a certain way. However, I do it for a purpose. For example, I load the dishwasher a specific way. All the forks go in the back, the spoons in the front, the knives in their assigned homes. Because when I unload, I can easily grab all the utensils that are the same and put them away quicker. Seems very reasonable to me.
I also put the dishes away placing the newly clean dishes under the ones currently in the cabinet. And I put the clean glasses behind the ones waiting to be used. Why? So that we don’t use the same three-four dishes and glasses over and over. Okay. Now that I type that, it does sound a bit O.C.D. But longevity of dishware is important, right? Right?
And yes, my closet is organized by clothing type and color. My shoes the same way. I put things back where I find them. It’s all done in the name of efficiency and preparedness. I don’t like wasting time and I don’t like being unprepared.
As I was leaving the gym that morning, the Lord dropped something on my heart. Being organized and prepared in my daily life isn’t a bad thing. And being a good steward of what I’ve been given (even if it is dishes and silverware) is important. But how organized and prepared am I in my walk with Jesus?
“Rhonda, I want you to be O.C.D. But not how you think. I want you to be “Obsessive Christ Desiring.” I knew exactly what He was saying to me. I invest time and effort organizing my worldly life, preparing, trying to honor my gifts and possessions. But when it comes to my walk with Jesus, am I as organized and committed to being prepared? Do I honor my gifts with my time and heart? Sadly, the answer is not like I should. And not like I want to.
In Revelation 2:2-5, John is writing to the Church as Ephesus; the first of seven churches he addresses in Revelation. Ephesus was an ancient port city located in modern-day Turkey. The city was once considered the most important Greek city and the most important trading center in the Mediterranean region. It was also a city that practiced witchcraft and debauchery. The Church at Ephesus was known as the church that lost it’s first love. That first love being Jesus.
“I know what you have done—how hard you have worked and how you have endured. I also know that you cannot tolerate wicked people. You have tested those who call themselves apostles but are not apostles. You have discovered that they are liars. You have endured, suffered trouble because of my name, and have not grown weary. However, I have this against you: The love you had at first is gone. Remember how far you have fallen. Return to me and change the way you think and act and do what you did at first. I will come to you and take your lamp stand from its place if you don’t change.” (Rev 2:2-5)
God knew how hard Christians in Ephesus worked and what they endured. He appreciated their tenacity in enduring troubles. But what mattered to God wasn’t what they did but for whom they did it. I suspect that, like me, many had good intentions. Their efforts were honorable. But at some point, they lost focus on why they were living and for whom they owed their lives.
God tells them to “return to me and do what you did at first.” Do you remember when you fell in love with Jesus? That fire that burned inside you to live for Him? To share what you had found in the forgiveness of your sins? To live a life that honored Jesus first? He wants that now. He wants that always.
He wants that more than an organized dishwasher or excel spreadsheet workout. Honoring my body – the temple He provided – is a good thing. But if my joy comes from spreadsheets rather than gratitude, I’ve missed the point. Honoring my home and its contents is a good thing. But not if my rewards are in organized flatware.
What I’m trying to say is Jesus wants me to be obsessive about loving Him. Obsessive about learning about Him. Obsessive about growing in my faith. Obsessive about sharing the gospel that saved me from eternal damnation. Obsessive about showing others the reckless, overwhelming, breathtaking love of Jesus Christ. And all I need to do that is an open and willing heart.
A heart that turns off the TV and opens my Bible. A heart that puts down the smart phone and picks up a devotional. A heart that reads Christian authors who can teach me how to walk closer to Jesus. A heart that that is filled with music that is God-honoring and praise filled. A heart that understands that while I live in this world, I live for Jesus.
I’m not asking you to live in a Jesus bubble. Jesus wants us to be light in the world in which we live. But we cannot shine if we are not charged and prepared. And you can’t be prepared without investing your time, your heart, and your mind with intention. “The love you had at first is gone.” The word for love used is agape love. That means the “active love of God for His Son and His people.” He isn’t asking for a casual commitment. He’s asking you to love Him with the same love He has for you! The same love He has for Jesus.
For me, that means making more time to not just read my Bible, but to dig deep. To understand context and meaning. It is engaging Holy Spirit to help me grow closer in my walk with Jesus. It is inviting Jesus into my everyday moments. It is being still and simply uttering his name. “Jesus.” “Jesus.” Waiting for Him to reveal His plans to me. It is loving Him as I did the first moment we met.
I’ll always be organized and perhaps a little obsessive about how I do things. And that’s okay. But Jesus and I are working together to make sure that I am truly obsessive about what matters. So, bring on the O.C.D. Cause I can’t think of any better way to live than to be obsessed with Christ.
In what ways are you putting other things before your time and growth in Jesus? I encourage you, today, to talk to Jesus and ask Him to show you where you need a little O.C.D.
First love reminder is always timely! Thank you!❤️
Thank you! It is so easy to forget.