The Power of Being Available: Seeking God’s Kingdom First.

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” — Matthew 6:31-33

Have you ever asked yourself, “What does it really mean to seek God’s Kingdom first?” I know I have, even after years of being involved in ministry. Despite my familiarity with this scripture, I recently felt compelled to revisit its meaning when faced with my own struggles and worries.

Like many of us, I found myself incorrectly assuming that seeking God’s Kingdom meant doing grand things: leading ministries, writing books, or reaching thousands with powerful sermons, podcasts and social media. While these are very valuable and important, they can easily become overwhelming if we think they are the only way to truly put God’s Kingdom first. This mindset can leave most of us spiritually dried out and burned out.

A Simple Revelation

Recently, while feeling weighed down by responsibilities and worries—work, ministry, and the absence of my husband Julio at home—I found myself pondering the scripture of Matthew 6. “What does it mean to truly seek Your Kingdom first, Lord?" I asked.

I knew the passage very well, but I realized that I needed some deliverance in my thinking because I was feeling stress that I wasn’t doing enough or a good enough job with the ministry and I found myself stressed about trying to meet my needs, wants, and desires in life. This doesn’t match the truth that Jesus tells us in Matthew 6, so I knew something needed to be changed about my thinking.

The answer came at an unexpected moment. 

After a long day of work at my full-time job and taking care of chores, I was washing dishes after dinner when I thought of Sister Reyna, a dear friend of Julio and me. Reyna and her husband Elmer pastor a church in Puerto Barrios, Guatemala where Julio grew up. They make countless sacrifices for their congregation and she and I have formed a close sisterhood. Elmer, Reyna, and their church are always praying for Julio and me, as well as for Unlimited Faith Ministry and all of you who support us. What a precious part of the Kingdom of God they are! 

I felt prompted by the Holy Spirit to reach out to her. I paused, set down my dish sponge, dried my hands, and sent her a message telling her she was on my heart.

Her response came later that night: “The Lord was not wrong when He put me on your heart.” She shared the burdens she and Elmer had been carrying—attempted thefts at their church and the surrounding churches, fear for the safety of the church, and a new government mandate in Guatemala requiring all churches to hire lawyers to apply for a special legal status or face forced closure by the government. They wanted to install cameras to monitor the church from home, as there is no insurance for such losses in Guatemala, and they had a trusted lawyer, but the costs were beyond their reach. I know for a fact that Elmer and Reyna personally sacrifice many things every day to take care of the flock God has given them and they do it tirelessly with great love. They are a true example of love and sacrifice and their testimonies inspire Julio and me often.

Reyna explained to me through text that she felt too overwhelmed to ask for help because we had helped them so much before with other things. I read her messages to Julio as they came in, and we immediately called her. We knew God was asking Unlimited Faith Ministry to step in and help.

The cost for the security cameras and legal assistance totaled only about $1,700 USD and praise God, the ministry had enough to cover this cost thanks to support from people like you! We told Reyna on the phone that we would gladly send the money and I heard the heavy burden leave her voice. The presence of God was tangible even over the phone! God has a beautiful way of turning tears of burden and pain into tears of joy and thankfulness. We praised God together, comforted one another, and I knew that we all rested better that night, filled with gratitude for His provision.

The Lord illustrated an important point to me after we hung up the phone for the night. Reyna and Elmer were certainly seeking the Kingdom of God, and He provided for them, meeting their needs and lifting their burdens. And God provided for me, too, in that moment, though I wouldn’t understand fully until the next morning… 

The True Meaning of Seeking God’s Kingdom: Be available

The following morning, I sent the funds to Reyna and I had a quiet moment with the Lord. The whole experience was a reminder that small acts of availability can become lifelines in the hands of God and building blocks for His Kingdom. I pondered the question again “What does it truly look like to seek God’s Kingdom first?” This time, I heard the Spirit of the Lord clearly say:

“Be available.”

Hearing those two words from God, renewed my mind and delivered me from the mindset I had the day before! God showed me that seeking His Kingdom starts with simply being available. It’s not only about grand accomplishments—it’s about being willing to pause, listen, and act on His promptings, even in the everyday moments. I made myself available to Him simply by listening to His gentle prompting to message Reyna. Imagine what would have happened if I didn’t! I fulfilled what God wanted me to do in order to tend to His Kingdom that particular day, and I did so simply by being available to Him. God gets the glory for all of this! He’s the only one deserving of it. But through this example, we can see how our role is vital. God invites us to participate in building His Kingdom with Him. And it starts by making and keeping ourselves available.

Being available means:

• Spending time with God daily, reading His Word, praying, listening to His voice, and ministering to God by worshiping Him.

• Responding to His voice when He places someone on your heart.

• Offering support to a friend, spouse, child, a stranger, or fellow believer in need as the Holy Spirit prompts you.

This revelation lifted a heavy burden. I realized that seeking God’s Kingdom isn’t defined by doing more or achieving perfection; it’s about being ready to respond to God’s voice in the moment. It’s a path marked by peace, not striving. This doesn’t mean doing the “big” things won’t come. It means that whatever we do, we do it because God directed us to, not just because we think we need to strive for it because we think we know what seeking His Kingdom “should” look like based on our own understanding. The Bible says not to lean on our own understanding, but instead to seek Him in all our ways and He shall make our paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).

A Reminder for All of Us

If you feel burned out or inadequate, remember that Jesus calls us to rest in Him (Matthew 11:38-30). We are to act from a place of rest in Christ, a place where we have God-like rest in our spirit, despite the many challenges and burdens that come our way (Hebrews 4:10). We do this by fully relying on God for everything, not ourselves. All our strength, resources, power, and direction must come from Him, not our own heads. 

Seeking God’s Kingdom first means trusting Him and being available to His guidance. Whether through a simple text message, a prayer for or with someone, or a Word from the Bible that is like healing balm to the soul of another person, God uses all these acts to build His Kingdom.

“Do not despise the day of small beginnings” (Zechariah 4:10). Remember that God’s Kingdom is often built brick-by-brick in the humble moments of obedience. May we all find joy in being available to Him, trusting that He will provide for our needs, wants, and desires as we put Him first.

One day, Unlimited Faith Ministry may have a super fancy blog and awesome social media pages and a really cool podcast and a better website and actual planned email campaigns and so foth.. These are a few of the things that I was beating myself up for not having done already. I’d love to see all that stuff happen, but right now I’m one human with limited time and knowledge, and God knows that. I also trust that if God wants that to happen, it will happen by me (or someone He may send to help) remaining available to Him, to His voice, especially in the things that seem mundane or small to us but are actually huge. Our experience with me messaging Reyna and her sharing her great need, which we were able to meet, is an example of this. That is what putting God’s Kingdom first is. And while seeking His Kingdom sometimes involves sacrifice or challenges, God will provide for our needs. That’s what He did for Reyna and Elmer through Unlimited Faith Ministry, and that’s what He did for me when He changed my mindset.

It is vital that we make ourselves available to hear and yield to God’s voice, not just for God himself and His plans, but also for each other! This includes the body of Christ and those who do not yet know Christ yet. 

Don’t despise the small things, they are often the most important, and you’ll see that when you keep yourself available to the leadings of God’s spirit.

I trust that this message has blessed you. May you rest in God’s love, trust Him to meet your needs and fulfill your desires, and may you increase in your ability to hear His voice and promptings. May you find joy and fulfillment in being available to Him as you seek His Kingdom first, doing all things from a place of peace and joy in Christ.

Thank you for reading and thank you for supporting our ministry. Without you, we couldn’t have helped Reyna, Elmer, their congregation, and everyone else that we help in Guatemala and in the prisons in Maryland. 

God bless you abundantly. 

With the love of Christ,
Anna Aguilar

Director and Co-Founder