Give Your Best
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven
- Matthew 5:16 (NKJV)
As a young married couple in 2006, my wife and I took the plunge and began building our forever home shortly after our first anniversary. Many people chuckled and told us that if we survive the challenges of building a house together, then we can handle anything marriage could possibly throw our way. We dreamed of the perfectly decorated home, a big manicured yard, a large driveway for our future children to ride bikes upon, dogs running freely in the yard, and many more memories to be made in our home. While my wife and I didn’t have any conflicts of interest in the details of planning our new home, what we did struggle with were the financial obligations of owning a new home.
Our home cost us much more than expected and stretched our finances very thin. That manicured lawn I so desperately desired seemed more like a dream than a reality. I was too ignorant to have considered all the other expenses that come with purchasing a home, one of which was the need for a lawnmower. It wasn’t long before my father-in-law also saw our need for a lawnmower. In fact, he saw the need before we moved into our new home and gifted us his own personal riding mower.
While ecstatic to receive such a generous gift, the offering didn’t make sense to me, as he had chosen to gift us with the better of the two mowers he owned. The mower he decided to keep for himself looked like it was ready for the scrap yard and as if it could break down at any moment. So, I couldn’t help but ask the question, “Why are you giving us your best mower?” My father-in-law’s response still resonates with me today. He said, “God gave us His best when he sent his only son Jesus to die on the cross for us; as Christians, we should be giving the very best we have too.” While the mower was a gift to me, it was God who was glorified that day.
This story often makes me ask myself if I am giving my best to glorify God. When I pray and read my Bible, am I giving God my sharpest mind, or my leftover time? When I hear of a need in the church, do I give the best that I can provide, or do I give in a way that will temporarily meet the need? When a job needs to be done at church or within the community, do I set out to complete the job professionally, or do I help in a way that the job looks “good enough?”
May we never forget Christ gave His all for us on the cross. Strive to give your best, and in doing so, let your light shine so God may get the glory.