Success

The following is an account of the passing of Tom Carson by his son, D.A. Carson in his book Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor:

When he died, there were no crowds outside the hospital, no editorial comments in the papers, no announcements on television, no mention in Parliament, no attention paid by the nation. In his hospital room there was no one by his bedside. There was only the quiet hiss of oxygen, vainly venting because he had stopped breathing and would never need it again.

But on the other side all the trumpets sounded. Dad won entrance to the only throne room that matters, not because he was a good man or a great man – he was, after all, a most ordinary pastor – but because he was a forgiven man. And he heard the voice of him whom he longed to hear saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant; enter into the joy of your Lord.”

Let us always remember that success in the kingdom of God is not measured by numbers, money, prestige, or any other earthly thing, but by faithfulness to Christ.

May the greatest words that we ever hope to hear be “Well done, good and faithful servant… enter into the joy of your Lord!”