"So the last will be first, and the first will be last"

"'These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.'

But he answered one of them, ' Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?'

So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

Matthew 20:12-16

I am struggling to fight laziness -- napping, napping, Tetris, napping.  Yes, I do sleep a lot. All I want to do is to escape; I don't want to do anything. I know in my mind that Christ is my strength in my weakness, but I don't know it in my heart. I listened to a sermon about Paul, who lived with a goal to please God in all that he did. Rather than being encouraged by Paul's testimony, I sunk into failure, listing all my inadequacies and shortcomings. Selfish, ungrateful, not focused on Christ -- this is the core of my sinful heart.

But this morning, God spoke to me through His Word. Jesus does not measure my worth by how much I do for Him; He is overly gracious and generous to me. How privileged I am to be able to be working for the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, whose name is Jesus Christ. How thankful I am to serve a Father who opened the doors of Heaven and a path to Him through Jesus Christ not based upon on how much or how well I serve Him. How honored I am to be a citizen of His Kingdom.

I am unworthy, but my worthiness is in Christ. He bore my sinful heart on the cross, and rose again, so that I and all can live and be free. Jesus is worth it -- this should be my motivation to get out of my bed, to set an example of Christ, to proclaim His truth so all can enjoy the hope, peace, and love found only in His Kingdom.

Great is God's grace and love.

D.T.