God is not unjust so as to overlook your work
and the love you have demonstrated for his name
by having served and continuing to serve the holy ones.
We earnestly desire each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness
for the fulfillment of hope until the end,
so that you may not become sluggish, but imitators of those who,
through faith and patience, are inheriting the promises. (Heb 6:10-12)
We are selfish people.
There. I’ve said it.
We are selfish people.
Oh, we try not to be. We try to look out for the benefit of others. We often volunteer regularly to meet the needs of others. Yet there is something deep inside that often says, “But what about me? Who is going to do for me? Who is going to recognize what I do for others?”
There is someone who does recognize all that we do: God. The Letter to the Hebrews reminds us that God does not overlook our work. He knows what we do in His name and He truly appreciates all that we do.
That needs to be sufficient for us.
We cannot do the things that we do and say the things that we say simply for reward. If we do, we hear in some of the Gospels, we are already rewarded. We want our reward to be deferred. We want our reward to be eternal.
If that is the case, we need not worry about any immediate reward and we need to remind ourselves of the simple message: God sees all that we do. God knows all that we do. God knows what is in our hearts. At the right time, God will repay us for all that we have done.
So, instead of worrying about being noticed or garnering any kind of reward, let us simply be busy about doing the work of God today.
FAITH ACTION: Ask God to give you a dose of humility today so that you do not expect reward for what you do.