Head: Know God's Word | Heart: Love God | Hands: Follow God's Way

Read Matthew 23:22-24

Have you ever heard the expression, keep the main thing the main thing? In today’s scripture, these verses challenge us to not forget the most important things.

In Matthew 23:23, the verse says you give a tenth of your spices but forget the more important matters of the law, such as justice, mercy, and faithfulness. That’s as if you remembered to do your chores as your parents asked, but you forgot to be kind to your brothers and sisters. Jesus wants us to be faithful to be responsible for what we are asked to do but to remember the bigger picture of being kind. Verse 24 says, You blind guides, you strain out a gnat and swallow a camel. This verse cautions us to the big things that matter most, such as loving others and striving to do what is right.

Talk about some of the small things that you as a family do very well. What are some of the bigger things that you need to spend more time focusing on? Maybe you each remember your chores and individual responsibilities, but the bigger, more important things such as sitting down together as a family get lost in the busyness of sports and ballgames or other responsibilities. Talk with your family about things that should be given more importance and work on those things together.

Prayer: Dear God, Jesus was the only perfect person that walked on this Earth. We are not able to be perfect, but we can continuously strive to be better. Lord, help set our minds and hearts on the important things that draw us, individually and as a family, closer to You. Lord, teach us to focus on what things need to be given more time and attention for our eternal goals. Amen.