Booker T. Washington has left us the following words to consider.  “I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.”  As Christians in a material world we often forget that our success is not measured by the wealth we obtain or how important our job title is.  Many people waste their lives chasing worldly success and public acknowledgment. Matthew lets us know that these accolades are only temporary (Matthew 6:19).  It is not your possessions or your “public profile” that defines who you are, it’s what you give during your lifetime. 

As practicing Christians we must give our lives to Christ, our best effort to the Gospel, and our hearts to heaven.  If we do this everything else will fall into place.  As it says in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” True Christianity is not concerned with what one may be able to gain, but how much one is able to sacrifice. In the long run, if we shamefully deny Christ to gain the pleasures of this sinful world, then He will reject us as well to his Father in heaven. (Matthew 10:33)