Do Not Rest On Your Laurels
“If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead, either write something worth reading, or do something worth writing.” ~ Benjamin Franklin
There is something that sits in the core of most people: the need and/or desire to be noticed, to be recognized, to be remembered. We go to great lengths to garner the attention of others. We want nothing more than to have people remember what we have said or done. We want to know that we have made a difference, that we have contributed something, that we have, in short, established a legacy for ourselves.
That is why so many people are in-your-face kinds of people. They want to make sure you see them. They might be quite obnoxious; but, to them, they are getting what they wanted. However, they do not realize that the attention that they are getting is negative rather than positive. However, who wants to be remembered as the obnoxious boor or the persistent pain or the person who thought he knew everything.
In every recipe, it seems, there is that one ingredient, that magic ingredient that makes the item as tasty as it is. If we want to leave behind a legacy that counts, Benjamin Franklin tells us the magic ingredient: something worth. We should not go for quantity, we should go for quality. If we are going to do something, it should be worth something.
Jesus said it in a slightly different way: If you want to be the best, be the servant of all. That is where the Lord put worth. Jesus did not say that, if you wanted to be successful, you should be the one with the most wealth, with the most possessions, with the most friends, or with the most slaves. No. He said, you should be the servant of all.
That is how you can establish your legacy. Get busy.
FAITH ACTION: Do not rest on your laurels. Instead, make sure that you get busy doing the Lord’s work today.