Trophies
“…if Jesus isn’t our sole prize, then everything we do is in vain. Anything we accomplish without Him will only turn to rust.”
“Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-24 CSB)
You know the trophies we used to receive in elementary school? Well, they’re still giving them out. Avery, my six-year-old, thought about them all year long as a kindergartner. She had witnessed her older brother receive a few trophies over the years, and she was mesmerized by them. Awards Day couldn’t come soon enough. She chose a beautiful dress that morning, and she was all butterflies on our drive. Her eyes twinkled with excitement. *Side-note: she did earn a few trophies, and her face was priceless!
But guess what? After a few days of moving them around her room and around various locations in our home, she forgot about them. The coveted gold plastic faded amidst the other decor of her bedroom and into her memories. Now they’ve become something else I need to dust.
We probably all have trophies just like this up in a box in our attics somewhere. I haven’t seen mine—or even thought of mine—in years. They’re sweet memories, but they don’t matter much anymore.
How often do we toil and stress and fixate on our own versions of these trophies? How often do we allow one to become our sole prize—something which will one day fade, turning to rust and being eaten by moths?
I’ve certainly chased after cheap prizes which could never satisfy me—grades, relationships, accolades, reputation. Maybe for you it’s something else. Maybe it’s looking like you have the perfect life on social media or a higher position in your job. Maybe it’s being the perfect parent or finding your soul mate. Maybe it’s buying a bigger house or a nicer car or paying off debt.
Most of these things aren’t inherently sinful. But they’re cheap, plastic gold.
What if we chased knowing Christ instead? What if our only trophy was Him—loving Him, walking with Him, and sharing Him with others? What if we acted as giddy as Avery did when we think about the impossible and mysterious reality that the God of all creation dwells within us, and everything else just pales in comparison? How would that affect our days, hours, and minutes?
It’s exhilarating to chase after something and attain it, whatever that thing may be. There is so much I want to accomplish. I have dreams as a wife, mom, writer, and friend—big dreams which give me heart palpitations! I bet you do too. But if Jesus isn’t our sole prize, then everything we do is in vain. Anything we accomplish without Him will only turn to rust.