I recently learned a new acronym called JOY:
Jesus first
Others Second
Yourself last
I know it may sound cheesy, but that sums up what God has been teaching me this past week. Here at New Song Ministries, there are so many ministry opportunities that it is very easy to over-commit your time and energy. I have been struggling to balance ministry, team time, and personal time with God. Although my heart completely connects with the ministry here, I must be extremely careful not to let that come before God. Back at training camp, we learned that we must fight for our time with God. The most important thing I can do to minister to the people here is to ensure that I am continually drawing closer to God. I will be totally unable to minister and pour into others if I am spiritually dry and empty.
Here is where JOY comes into play. God should be my top priority. Mark 12:30 sums this up: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”
God comes first.
Period.
Not ministry. Not even other people. God must be my highest priority. Nothing else should even come close. I lost sight of that a bit this week. I got so caught up in ministry that some days I did not even have a quiet time. Instead of putting God first, I put people and ministry first. Bad idea! After the second day of doing that, I was drained and exhausted. I knew I could not keep things up at that rate. I was forced to realize that I must take time to get away with God, even in the midst of a busy day of work. 
Once my heart is in the right place with God, I am empowered to live out Romans 12:10, “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.” Without God, this is impossible. I cannot give to others what I do not have. How can I fill others up if I am empty? Our J and O must be in the correct order if we are to be effective in ministry. Then we can walk in the power of the Spirit and pour out Christ’s love on all people.
The last position is Y. This can be incredibly difficult in and of itself. My old nature wants to put myself first. I don’t want to put God or others first. But God has called each one of us to take up our cross each day and die to self. This is the only way to truly live. Everything else is meaningless and empty.
