WORDLY WOMAN OR GODLY WOMAN?

I can always tell when someone is more wrapped up in the world than in God. Her conversation gives it away every time. I recently attended a gathering of people I knew since high school. The women sat in one room while the men sat in another.

As I listened to the most talkative woman in the bunch, I noticed that everything she said revolved around three things: money and what it could buy, education, and accomplishments. She couldn't understand why my daughter wasn't involved in more activities. She even suggested that I become a "team mom" and get involved with her. Not only did she think my daughter's life was empty, she also had suggestions for improving mine.

For this busy woman, life is about accomplishing things that bring her and her family money and recognition. Nothing is more important. She's wrapped up in the world and all its values, and she couldn't understand how I could be satisfied without those things, or how I could deny my daughter a life of non-stop activity and accomplishments.

We live in a culture that says our value comes from what we do and how busy we are. That's a lie. Our value comes from who we are. And who we are is God's beloved children. God is not impressed by how busy we are or how much money we make.

The Apostle Paul had every reason to boast about his education, heritage, and training, yet he considered that all rubbish compared to knowing Christ intimately. But how do you tell someone that the world's values mean nothing to you? How do you make someone understand that you've chosen to work for God, not for money or recognition?

I wish that I had been better prepared for that conversation. But I'm not sure that anything I said would have been met by understanding ears. Until you invite God into your life, you can't see the amazing ways that He works. People who are wrapped up in the world think only of working for recognition and money. They don't realize that God's resources are limitless and living for Him brings blessings far beyond what money can buy.

Worldly recognition is nothing compared to being in God's favor. And when we value the fleeting things of this world, we invest in a life that ends in death. My life is in Christ. My investment will pay off for eternity.