“God has not called me to be successful. He called me to be faithful.” ~ St. Teresa of Calcutta
The world. The world has an incredibly loud call that is difficult to ignore. The world calls us to be successful, even at the expense of others. The world calls us to be well known, even if we have to put someone else down so they are not recognized. In short, the worlds calls us to be and to do things that are opposite of what Jesus wants of us.
God does not call us to be successful unless success is defined as loving one another. God does not call us to be famous unless fame is defined as being recognized as a person who is willing to help others. God calls us to be faithful. If we are faithful to God, God will walk with us through thick and thin and give us what we need.
What does it matter if we make more money than anyone else? What does it matter if we are recognized by everyone as someone famous? What does it matter if we have more possessions than anyone else? Where does all of that get us? At the end of our lives, we take none of that with us. Our possessions, our money, our fame, our glory, they all go to the grave with us as they are a part of this world.
Do you know what we can take with us? We can take all the love that was between us and the people we served. We can take all the adoration of God that we gave to him throughout our lives. We can take our hope of resurrection with us. We can take these things and celebrate them with the Lord.
If we would mention those things to the world, it would turn its nose up on us. The world is interested in the here and now and in immediate gratification. We, on the other hand, are interested in what is to come and, because of that, we freely defer our gratification knowing that the Lord is worth more than anything the world has to offer.
FAITH ACTION: Let not the world’s call overwhelm your desire to remain faithful to the Lord today.