What Matters Most in Eternity

In eternity, what will shine brightest will not be how much money we made, nor how many people attended our conferences, nor how many people we directly led to the Lord, nor even how many people came to the Lord indirectly through us. What will shine brightest will be our faithfulness.

Did I do God's will? Did I follow God's plan for my life? Or at least, did I follow my conscience? That's what will matter the most.

James the Apostle was martyred early in the history of the church. He didn't get to live as long as his brother John, or his friend Peter. He didn't directly lead as many people to the Lord as they did. He didn't have a chance to write an Epistle or a Gospel. But He was faithful. And so he will be honoured in heaven just as much as someone whom God willed to live a longer life.

Even today, many believers suffer and are martyred, without having the chance to live a long life of ministry. They may die unknown. Yet in heaven their faithfulness will shine nonetheless brightly than someone else's. It's faithfulness that counts.

Jesus told Peter not to be concerned about God's will for John - but to focus instead on following God's will for his own life.

So don't fret when others prosper who do things which your conscience wouldn't allow you to do.

It may be that your prayers gave God permission to invade your life in a deeper way, and to require a more sacrificial life from you. But intimacy with God has rewards.

For example, even though you may feel that your role looks smaller than others, in reality your role may be the cause why others have been enabled to begin their seemingly larger role in the first place. Their fruit may be accreditable to your account.

But even that is not what shines brightest in heaven. Even if your life on earth is not in any way more fruitful than someone else's - neither directly nor indirectly - still, if you are faithful to what the Holy Spirit led you to do, then you have what matters most in eternity, in heaven, to the heart of God.

Godliness with contentment is great gain.

And yet, if we can learn something from others, then lets be open to that.