Jesus Over Everything: Uncomplicating the Daily Struggle to Put Jesus First

by Lisa Whittle

But Jesus does us the biggest favor when He puts a stop to things that are secretly chipping away at us.

It was about what I had chosen over God sometimes to numb myself or give myself a high when I was sad or happy or bored.

I felt God becoming more important to me than my momentary need to fix myself with something that will never fix me.

A Jesus-over-everything lifestyle is a Jesus-take-over-me-and-my-lifestyle so I don’t ruin my one precious life. But even more than that, it’s the understanding that the priority of Jesus brings order to the chaos of our lives, a job only God is big enough to do.

We innately know things that are not working for us. Sometimes we just don’t know how to change.

Despite our temporary feelings, there are three things that make our lives not work in the long term: 1. too many options 2. getting away with something that is not good for us 3. trying to handle everything ourselves

What we actually need is for God to adjust the lives we have by taking over and running things.

Before Jesus can be over everything, we have to allow Him to remove from our lives what has thus far only complicated them.

Wisdom is not about never apologizing. It’s about sincere apology when it’s right.

Choosing real over pretty is choosing to free our souls from the grip of an overfocus on self—something that is the root cause of most of our distresses.

Choosing pretty has led to insecurity and self-focus. Choosing real has led to freedom.

If love often comes from a place of safety, then judgment often comes from a place of fear.

The Bible sharply convicts as a sword, but it is never to be used as a weapon.

The sheer force of love is the only thing stronger than the vile hate that leads to things like racism and school shootings.

But at the end of the day, let’s do heart work and ask Jesus to help us love. It has the strength to overcome so much.

Measure your love by what your passion and courage have pressed you to love someone enough to say.

love denies self-interest even if it costs us.

Freedom of the flesh is doing what we want, when we want, whereas freedom of the Spirit is living a Spirit-led, Spirit-controlled life:

Serving God has long-lasting and ripple effects, in this life and on into the next, and this kind of fulfillment is unmatched.

Serving God builds character.

Serving keeps us from the self-destruction of self.

The best way to kill our flesh is to serve someone else—an

Serving uncomplicates everything.

Every complicated thing in life can be found by giving more of ourselves away, which is the opposite view the world takes, yet the world cannot advise us from its position of turmoil.

The spotlight can change who we are.

Wanting to exercise your gifts is not self-serving. Wanting people to love you because of it is.

1. We don’t retire from serving God. It is a lifetime commitment.

2. There are times we need to pivot in how we are serving.

Hype keeps everyone in denial about the smoke and mirrors of life, and when we discover what’s real, the fall is far.

A steady life is not about circumstance. It is about spiritual calibration—where Jesus balances you even in the midst of changing times and unexpected things.

Immediate obedience is the instant yes to Jesus, no matter what. Long obedience is the enduring yes to Jesus, no matter what.

What could God produce in us if we were to sit in the uncomfortable transformation process instead of running away?

No one in the hiding cave experiences this in the way Jesus intends because without truth, joy cannot be found in full.

Where knowledge can be gained through study practices, wisdom is a life practice based on Holy Spirit direction that needs to be put into place early—the earlier the better, in fact.

And always, always choose wisdom over knowledge.

God’s plan is not for us to accept salvation and sit with it. It is for us to share its miracle with the world.

the choice of commitment over mood is the choice to stabilize ourselves in the midst of.

Real over pretty: When we want to look perfect, we fight to be ourselves. Love over judgment: When we feel judgmental, we choose love.

Holiness over freedom: When we could say yes but it won’t make us more like Jesus, we say no instead. Service over spotlight: When we want attention, we lift up someone else. Steady over hype: When the world tries to influence us, we continually go to the Word. Honesty over hiding: When we want to lie, we out the secret to take away its power. Wisdom over knowledge: When we are tempted to rely on books or outside inspiration to be our best teacher, we ask God to make us wise instead. Commitment over mood: When we want to run, we stay.