Keeping the Main Thing the Main Thing: Prioritizing God’s Presence in a Busy World

Wherever this article finds you—whether in the valley or on the mountaintop—I pray that you are experiencing God’s faithfulness. Our God is always with us, meeting us right where we are, regardless of our circumstances.

Today, I want to encourage you to reflect on your priorities. Are you keeping the main thing the main thing? Are you putting God first in your list of priorities?

First Things First: God’s Simple Command

God Himself keeps our list of priorities straightforward. Throughout Scripture, He reminds us to love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39). In Matthew 6:33, He commands us to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

While this sounds simple, how often do we find ourselves entangled in the busyness of life, preoccupied with trivial matters, and caught in the struggle to keep up with the demands of success? In our pursuit of achievement, we can easily lose sight of God’s desires for our lives, settling for the fleeting praises of men rather than the everlasting peace of God.

The Challenge of Modern Life

Life in the 21st century, despite the conveniences technology offers, often lacks the space for meditating on God and waiting for His voice. This quiet, reflective time with God will not happen by accident; it must be a deliberate priority.

In Revelation 2, the Lord commends the Ephesian leaders for their hard work but admonishes them for losing their focus. In their eagerness to work for God, they had become so distracted that their hearts were no longer pointed toward Him. Their hands were full, but their hearts were empty. They had left their first love. This drift away from our first love for God doesn’t usually happen overnight—it happens gradually, as other seemingly good activities squeeze out our time with Him. Revelation 2:5 offers a sobering warning: “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.”

Remember, it is only because of His light and life in us that we have anything to sing or say. It is only in Him that we have a reason for every breath. “For in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28).

Ensuring Your Priorities Are Aligned

I have learned the importance of setting boundaries around my life, my resources, and my time to ensure I am faithful to the season I am in. God has placed me where I am now to serve and love my family, my church family, my neighbors, and Him. Rather than viewing Bible reading and prayer as tasks on a to-do list, I see my relationship with Jesus as the most vital connection in my life. His Word has become food for my soul. Choosing to worship is not just another rule to follow—it is a necessary priority that nourishes my entire being.

Here’s a practical exercise: take a look at where you spend your time, energy, and money. This will reveal what you truly value. If the results shock you or do not align with your heart’s desire, it is time to make some changes.

Get Realigned with God

With much love, I encourage you: if there are areas in your life that are out of balance, or if you are simply off track, take steps to put things right. As my husband often says, getting honest with yourself is one of the hardest things to do, but the fruit it yields is well worth the effort. Remember, God rewards fruit, not just activity.

As leaders, pastors, and worship pastors, it is essential to prioritize loving God and being filled in His presence. There is no substitute for this. As we shepherd others to Jesus, we must ensure we are continually renewed in our own walk with Him. Let us begin a revolution of truth, love, grace, family, forgiveness, and worship that transforms nations and draws us closer to Jesus.

Let’s keep the main thing the main thing.

Love you and totally believe in you.

Darlene Z.

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Darlene Zschech

Australian Darlene Zschech is acclaimed all over the world as a composer, worship leader, pastor, author and speaker, and became most well known for her involvement in the worship team at Hillsong Church, Sydney, Australia over many years. Although she has achieved numerous gold albums and her songs are sung in many nations of the world, Darlene’s success simply stands as a testimony to her life’s passion for serving God and people with all her heart. Alongside her husband Mark, they are the Senior Pastors of Hope Unlimited Church (HopeUC) on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia, which has now grown into India and the USA. As a composer, Darlene is perhaps most famous for the chorus “Shout to the Lord”, a song that is sung by millions of churchgoers every week and has been covered by many other artists. In addition to “Shout to the Lord”, Darlene has written many songs through solo projects: “Kiss of Heaven”, “Change Your World”, “You Are Love”, “In Jesus Name” and “Revealing Jesus”, a live worship album recorded with the Grammy Award winning Israel Houghton. Through the Compassionart project in 2008, Darlene was honoured to have the privilege of writing with some of the most generous-hearted worship writers and leaders of our day.