Deserving Better
Have you ever felt that you deserve better?
What if you were to receive exactly what you deserve? How would that work out for you?
And all the churches will know that I am the one who searches minds and hearts, and I will give to each of you as your works deserve. - Revelation 2:23
In today's reading from Revelation, the Son of God tells the churches they will get what they deserve, and I am not so sure that is good news.
The decision will be made, he says, based on what is in the hearts and minds of the people, and what works they do.
The second part of that may be missed in the equation. It sounds a lot like James, who tells us it is by our works that we are saved.
If we are good at the core, but we fail to do good, what is the point of that?
It reminds me of Job who was a righteous man, who prayed and praised God, but felt he was judged poorly. He wanted his day in court before God to plead his case.
His friends told him he must have done something to deserve what he received, but he stood firm in his conviction that God had punished him wrongly.
What Job failed to account for, that his friends tried to get him to see, was his failures, his lack of involvement in the lives of others whom he could have helped.
Imagine living a good life and finding out you failed to meet the barest minimum standards of being a good person, because you didn't do something you could have and should have for others.
We deserve better, we say, but what about all those who suffered more? What did they deserve, and whose job is it to help?
I was once told in an annual review that I had failed to do a good job. I was informed that the work I was doing was not what was expected of me. It was a devastating blow. I thought I knew what my job was, and here I was being told I had totally missed the mark. I received no bonus that year, and the following year I would be gone.
When it comes to getting this life right, we shouldn't wait until it is over to figure out what we were doing wrong. Job got a second chance because he lost everything.
We don't know what he did with his life after that. But I suspect he thought long and hard about what had happened to him and how he could do things differently.
We can do the same, now.
We don't have to wait. This Advent, we get a chance to take a close look at the works and offerings we bring to this life, and we can ratchet them up. Why not?
There are many who need help, and we have the time right now to do something. Of course, who knows how much time we have?
Today is the day to make a difference. If we put that on our hearts and minds, we will do something amazing.
More to come...