The measure of a man

Lately I have been through some changes at my job and I am trying to adjust to the new setting and people. One person who knew me from before introduced me this way “She is the smartest person I know and a hard worker”… I was struck by that description. Should it suffice to be known for the wealth of knowledge I have accumulated over the years and the work ethics I acquired? My mom always says she does not want this statement to be on her headstone “Her life was work and toil” because it befits a donkey not a person. Does it really matter how smart we are when we pass on? Nope. Does it matter how hard we worked? Again the same answer applies. So what then is the measure of a man? What does it mean to be successful in life? What should we strive to leave behind? A song by Linkin Park deals with that question: “When my time comes forget the wrong that I’ve done, let me leave behind some reason to be missed. Don’t resent me and when you’re feeling empty keep me in your memory and leave out all the rest.” So does it mean being loved is what matters in life? Sure seems nice to know that some people will cry and miss me for a while when I move on. But again, I don’t think that captures it. We are here for a reason. God made us in his image to bring pleasure to himself. We are to make God smile with what we do. Keeping God at the center of everything we do, honoring him with our decisions and obeying him to a point of dying to ourselves comes pretty close to it. So the less we are, the more we are. That’s what Jesus was getting at with the sermon of the mount. Amazing how we little ants try to figure out life when our creator has already put it in writing so long ago. Simplicity is too difficult for “smart” people like us… Thank God for his grace!

"Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man."
Ecclesiastes 12:13
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship."
Romans 12:1
"Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. "
Hebrews 13:20-21