Are You an “Organized Person”?

I think that a person who continually walks upright before the Lord can be compared to an organized person. I don’t consider myself an organized person because my life is largely out of order. This doesn’t mean that I don’t know how to organize, rather, it asserts that I don’t take the initiative to organize. I can look at a cluttered desk or a sloppy room and straighten it up just as easily as the next person. The fundamental difference between myself and those that I would label as “organized people” is the perseverance factor. “Organized people” are in a constant state of evaluation and action. “Organized people” don’t have access to some top secret book that teaches them how to clean up a desk or file an old paper. For the most part, they use the same knowledge that we all have. The main difference between us and them is that they actually use that knowledge on a regular basis.

As a believer, I share in Christ’s righteousness. I have none of my own. Therefore, I am buying into a lie if I believe that other Christians are “more righteous” or “more upright” than myself. In reality, the only difference between the child of God that lives an upright life and the child of God that doesn’t walk uprightly on a daily basis is discipline. As a child of God, you and I already have the ability to walk uprightly before the Lord. Some of us are more disciplined in our desire to do so than others. Just as discipline is the largest difference between an “organized” and an “unorganized” person, I would assert that discipline is the largest weakness of those children of God that do not consistently walk in an upright manner.

So what’s the solution to the problem? First, you must be certain that you are a child of God. It is impossible to walk uprightly before the Lord without the righteousness of Christ living inside of you. Second, your daily walk must be intenionaly God-centered. One cannot keep his or her life organized if they only stop to evaluate it once a month. In the same manner, if we do not purposefully spend time with God each day to evaluate our thoughts and actions, to thank Him for His mercy, and to seek that which honors Him, we will find it difficult to walk uprightly before Him. As a child of God, your goal in life is not to avoid temptation as it presents itself, but rather, to meditate on God every minute of every day.

Philippians 4:4-9 is an excellent passage for those who want to walk uprightly before the Lord. In it, Paul gives children of God several commands:

• Rejoice in the Lord always (4)
• Let your gentle spirit be known to all men (5)
• Be anxious for nothing (6)
• Let your mind dwell on that which honors God (8)
• Live what you believe (9)

The interesting thing about the above passage is that Paul doesn’t give us 10 ways to avoid sin. Instead, he focuses on our relationship with God. Rejoice in God. Think on that which honors Him. When you do that, verse 7 says that the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds. As is true with everything in our walk with Christ, maturity comes with time and dedication. As you grow in Christ, your discipline should grow as well. I challenge you to spend your day pursuing God rather than fighting temptation.