Saturday, March 14
He answered his father, “For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!” Then the father said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.”
—Luke 15: 29-32
I am an overachiever. Who knows why, but from early in life, I sought to do it all. Perhaps because I was an only child or just because God wired me that way, pushing myself to the next level to achieve something seemingly beyond my grasp has fueled my every thought each day.
As I age, however, I see the fallacy of my modus operandi. While I must always strive to use the gifts God has given me, if all I do is aim toward production and not balance, I ironically lose my life. I must learn from the older brother in the story of the prodigal son: all I need has already been given to me.
The older brother is so fixated on comparing his accomplishments and loyalty to his brother’s scandals that he doesn’t see all that he has. While he is worried about a calf, a robe and a ring, his father reminds him that all that they have they own together.
The son’s focus upon accomplishment has been so great that he, judging the reception of his brother, fails to recognize the beauty in his own life. Focusing on his father’s graciousness and mercy toward his brother, he fails to see that those are the very things he already has.
Perhaps you are a bit of an overachiever too. Or perhaps you fail to recognize the blessings of your own life while lamenting the grace in another’s. Letting go, seeking balance, and finding avenues for daily grace and mercy open us to the possibility of God’s radical love.
As you walk the Lenten journey, identify ways you have failed to give thanks for all the things you share with God and others. Ask yourself, when have I failed to welcome others because I’ve focused too intently on my own accomplishments and need for approval? Find ways to see all that you share with God, and in so doing, realize that in truth, we are all children sharing the inheritance of God.
Welcoming God, you always see me when I have wandered too far and you always welcome me when, in my own achievements, I have attempted to earn your grace; open me to the radical nature of your love, and letting go of all the conditions I place upon you, help me to share the grace and mercy you share with all your children. Amen.
