“4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 8 The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people.”
-Titus 3:4-8
“And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not be unfruitful.” -Titus 3:14
I am a planner. Maybe it’s because I like to write things down in a Lily Pulitzer student agenda or maybe it’s my sheer fear of the future, but I am a planner. I like to do as many things in a day as humanly possible and then some. And often times I will sit down at the end of the day and realize I was very productive, for myself.
But did I put the needs of others before my own? Did my schedule reflect the life of someone following Jesus? Would people be inspired to spread love by observing my actions?
These are the questions we should be asking ourselves when we sit down to plan our day (or week, you overly organized future wedding planners out there.)
We must not only make time for the lives of others, but make them our first priority. Put the lives of others before ourselves. God calls us to devote ourselves to good works, not to meetings and classes and pie charts. If our only goal when we wake up is to serve others, we are also serving God, and will therefore, always be fruitful.
So often we are tired, depressed, anxious, unhappy, and downright bitter and don’t know why. I believe this is God calling us back home to His kingdom. In times of sorrow we must abandon our own agendas and dive right into the lives of others. Are you depressed? Volunteer at a soup kitchen. Are you unsure of your calling in life? Send someone an encouraging text today to inspire them in their future. Are you bitter or angry with someone? Clean out your closet and donate your clothes to someone in your life who needs them more than you.
Putting aside our own concerns and feelings for the sake of others is one of the most fragrant offerings we can offer up to God.
Sure, your day might not go as planned, and you may not get to everything you wanted to, but when you put the needs of others before your own, God is well pleased and will bless you abundantly in due time.
“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9 ESV
Doing good is better than doing a lot.