Whom have I in heaven but you? 

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength

 of my heart and my portion forever.

Psalm 73:25-26

I think I’ve always struggled with what I wanted to do with my life. I mean, it was never very clear to me. I have never heard the audible voice of God telling me what to do with my one precious life. I always felt like I was kind of winging it. I was never great at planning things, and this included planning my own life. I was always just content to be with God, to just walk with Him like Enoch did, to just love Him like Mary of Bethany did, always choosing the one thing that is necessary, that is more important and rewarding than all other pursuits and ambitions in life.

But the temptation to neglect sitting at God’s feet is real. I found that out in high school as I felt pressured by peers and teachers and parents to go to college. It wasn’t their fault. It was just a widely held belief at the time that you couldn’t be successful in life without a degree in something. But God’s standard of success is not so superficial, nor so fleeting or expensive. Though that’s not to say there’s no cost to following after Jesus. It will cost you everything. It will cost you your life. He asks for all of us. His first and greatest commandment is to love Him above all else, to love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Matt. 22:37). 

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t go to college. If that is where God is leading you, then of course you should go! I’m just reflecting that it is not necessary to please God. And even now, after college, pursuing success in business does not equate to success in God’s eyes. For He doesn’t really want our sacrifices, our ministries, or our programs if they are not done in love. He doesn’t care how influential we become on earth or how many followers we have on social media. But are we spending time with Him in the secret place, seeking His face continually behind closed doors where we are seen by the only One whose approval really matters?

For in the end, we cannot take our earthly accolades with us. For in heaven, God is all we have. He is our prize, our reward for all the work we have done, all the songs we have sung, all the pain we have endured. And yet, if He is not our only desire on this earth, the one thing that we seek above all else, then how will we be able to receive Him as our reward when we meet Him face to face? If He is not our “greatest joy” now, how will He be our greatest joy in heaven (Ps. 34:4)? And oh, how we will need the joy of the Lord in the days to come, for it truly is our strength. And so I pray:

Lord, let Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Prepare our hearts for Your return, that we might be found faithful stewards of the mysteries of God, loving You wholeheartedly as You deserve, and loving others as You have first loved us. Lord, let it be said of Your Church that they triumphed over the accuser by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony and that “they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death” (Rev. 12:11). Restore to us the joy of our salvation, the inexpressible joy of knowing You. Thank You, Jesus, for Your grace that is sufficient to keep us steadfast and to present us “blameless before the presence of your glory with great joy” (Jude 1:24). Amen.

Excerpt from my book, The Good Portion: Poetry and Reflections

Get it on Kindle or paperback here: https://a.co/d/aueXb4G