This is a new day… a day for us all to reflect on what we are doing in our lives. Not in terms of whether we work everyday or how much time we spend with friends/family but really reflect on whether or not we are working toward our true purpose. Last night during Bible study, my Pastor (Pastor Clifton E. Lewis, Mount Harmony Missionary Baptist Church, Ruston Louisiana) raised this question: “Are you worth it?” Hmmm… what exactly does that mean? Well… each morning, God wakes us up. Every couple of seconds, He allows breath to enter our bodies and our heart to continue its rhythmic beat. No matter how ‘bad’ we think things have gotten in our lives, we are still living, which is a blessing in itself that we seldom stop to think about.

The most important question is: ARE WE WORTH IT? Is God getting anything back from the substantial investment He has made in us? Or, is He wasting good sense and a reasonable portion of good health on us? What are we doing with what the Lord has given us? These are questions that we all need to use as an outline to evaluate our worth and importance to His Kingdom. With things as they are in your life right now at this very moment, are you on the left with the goats, or are you on the right with the sheep? As the Lord pointed out in Matthew 25 [show] "Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, 'Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.' Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise answered, saying, 'Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.' And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, lord, open to us.' But he answered, 'Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.' Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. "For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money. Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.' And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, 'Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.' His master said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.' He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, 'Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.' But his master answered him, 'You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.' "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." (ESV)
, HELL was never intended for us, but was prepared for Satan and his angels. By our own actions, we decide whether or not we will join him there.

Much of this post is taken from my own enlightenment provided through my own Pastor, but I do feel led to share this last point: Jesus did not teach us that we are to minister to the needs of the righteous, or even to the ‘good’… He never suggested that we should only give to those whom we consider to be worthy of our gifts. In fact, contrarily, He told us the exact opposite- we are in NO position to make that determination because we have NOT been given the authority to judge our brother, sister, neighbor, etc. Every power that we have been given was given to us by the authority of God. He has not delegated authority… only the power we have through our ability to call on the name of Jesus by which all things are made possible according to our faith.

When we find ourselves at the foot of the throne, we will not be judged according to how many Sundays we attended the morning service or sang in the church choir. We will not be asked how many times we cried out, “Lord, Lord!” or how expensive the garments were that we wore into His temple. We will not be questioned as to our deeds that were seen by men, but rather we will be judged according to the things we did in the NAME OF JESUS… the things we did in private that men could not see… the things we did FOR HIM, not for worldly recognition. We will not be judged by how popular we are in the eyes of the Christian community. These are the things that are valued by hypocrites.

We WILL be asked the following on judgment day: When I was hungry, did you feed me? When I was thirsty, did you give me something to drink? When I was a stranger, did you invite me in? When I was naked, did you clothe me? When I was sick, did you care for me? When I was in prison, did you visit me? The Lord has made it abundantly clear that whatever you have done for the least of His brothers, you have done for Him. Think about that… what have we done for Christ by the actions we have displayed to our brothers in Him? Are we truly using the best of our ability to reach our purpose? Are you worth the investment He placed within you? Or have you wasted it? Evaluate your life, and make a commitment to God today, because tomorrow could be your day of judgment. How would you measure up?

* Written by Kathleen Robertson March 14, 2007