Rick Warren's famous, life-changing book "The Purpose Driven Life" starts with these words. "It's not about you. The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It's far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions." It later goes on to read "You were born by his purpose and for his purpose." That is a sobering thought. You were put here for something greater than you.
That statement could be the catalyst for a gazillion blog posts and sermons. But I want to focus on our definition of greatness. I think that many people - myself included - think of worldly applause and accolades as a measure of greatness. But if we focus on pleasing the Father, then what the world says doesn't matter. Follow me for a moment: Imagine yourself the church soloist. You can sang! Every Sunday you are sanging for the Lord. People are ministered too, blessed, and comforted by God's work through you. But Monday - Friday you are an accountant. You dream of singing on a big stage with a Beyonce'-esque set up but that hasn't happened for you. And you are disappointed and feel small. You think "when am I going to do something important?" Now fast-forward 40 years. You are still singing in the choir. You are still an accountant. But as you are walking out of church one Sunday, Senator Johnson comes up to you and says "Aren't you Ms. Jacobs? You don't know me but when I was in college I was in a really dark place. I decided to visit this church and heard you sing. When you sang I could feel the Lord moving on my behalf. It's because of God working through you that I didn't give up, got saved, and went on to help others. Thank you."
That may not be important to the world, but that is important to the kingdom of God. If we focused first and solely on serving God (and others through your ministry) the need for worldly applause will diminish.
