On the Horizon

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“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

Colossians 3:23-24

How would your life look differently if you embraced and believed fully what the verse in Colossians states? If the truth above is something you already believe and actively live out, how does this truth make a difference in your life?

“Do your best.”

That was all my parents ever asked of me. Year after year, as I advanced grade levels . . . all the way through college, those were the words I heard countless times: “We will always be proud of you if you just do your best.”

Of course, my parents were extremely intelligent and wise individuals. They knew that I was capable of doing very well no matter what task I was focused upon if; I made an adequate effort. So my parents knew exactly how to exert just the right amount of pressure while subtly teaching me about responsibility.

They knew, of course, that by requesting me to do my best, they were instilling in me a clear sense of accountability and self-reliance. The times that I failed, I could blame no one else. I knew that I fell short of my goal because I failed to deliver my best effort on a consistent basis.

The Divine Creator asks the same of us, so this is yet another example of the wonderful way in which my Christian parents lived our their faith in a quietly dignified manner. They didn’t pound me over the head with the Bible — literally or figuratively — or yell Scripture at me during every conversation. They didn’t haul me off to the pastor’s office to be counseled on the rare occasion that I fell short of the mark.

Instead, they did exactly what the Divine Creator has done with humanity: Provided the tools, instructions, and inspiration — and then allowed us to take it from there, awaiting the results and standing ready to repeat the process as many times as necessary in order to assure our success.

We have been given free will, a tremendously important centerpiece of our belief system. It is up to us to make the most of that gift. That is why we have also been given intellect — in order that we might analyze, contemplate, evaluate, and ultimately exercise our free will by making choices. Like our parents, the Divine Creator hopes that we will make good choices. Productive choices. Healthy choices. Kind choices. The list goes on . . . each day of our life is comprised of a series of choices, some about the minuscule details of our daily journey and some monumental that impact our very destinies. As to all of those choices, we should work at making them with all of our heart, always mindful of the value of the gift of free will. Always mindful of the ultimate sacrifice that secured the gift for us and assures us that, when we fail, we will be unconditionally forgiven, bathed in healing love, and given the opportunity to try as many additional times as is necessary in order to succeed.

I believe that, even though we may not always have the language of Colossians at the forefront of our consciousness, that verse — and so many others like it — is ingrained in our subconscious minds and informs our efforts throughout each and every day. As Christians, we have a foundational set of principles that fuel us, even when we are not actively contemplating them. I think of my core beliefs as my “code of conduct” from which I do not veer even though I may not be actually thinking about that code or making choices by literally asking myself, “If I do X instead of Y, will that be consistent with my Christian beliefs?” Realistically, life moves too quickly to make that overt practice a reality at all times.

Rather, doing my best because of my beliefs became, over time, a “way of life.” That does not mean that I always make the best choices. But it does mean that when I don’t and have to regroup, refocus, and try again, I always do so with a firm faith foundation, confident in the knowledge that I am forgiven for my failures.

And every time I do not achieve my goals, I again hear my parents’ voices echoing in my head: “Do your best.” No one, not even the Divine Creator, could ever ask more of me.

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The catchphrase “It’s not about me” has become quite popular in our current world today. What does that phrase mean to you in your personal life? Explain.

But it is all about me!

That’s what I jokingly tell my boss, anyway. She is extremely busy and pulled in many different directions, so it is not unusual for a few days to pass during which we don’t interact except, perhaps, via email. We sometimes pass each other in the hallway and I’ll remind her that I am waiting for an answer or direction about a particular issue. She promises to meet with or email me and, eventually, we sit down and talk about all pending issues. We have a running joke about her availability, though. When we finally meet, I always remind her that she is forgetting the most important rule in our workplace: “It is all about me, you know. You keep forgetting that! Me, me, me, me, me! You are supposed to pay attention to me! All of that other stuff is unimportant in relationship to me!” She laughs, gives me a faux apology, and then we move on to business.

It is human nature to give priority to our own needs, wants, desires, problems, goals, and, most importantly, feelings. In fact, it is what American pop culture urges us to do.

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