A Bright Future

I get numerous comments at the end of our worship services while greeting people in the lobby. We had a big crowd here yesterday which meant lots of comments (mostly all good ones) but one stuck out at me:

"You've got a bright future ahead of you young man."

He had generous compliments on the service & my message but I couldn't quit thinking about that particular sentence all day long. One sweet lady told me if I ever preached a better sermon I would have to work real hard b/c she loved it...that lifted me up but I already had this previous comment burned into my mind.

Was I encouraged by it? Yes & no.

Yes, because it means God used me to have an impact on his life during the service & knowing I did good for God's glory meant something.

No, because as much as I want a bright future what I'm striving for daily in my ministry is a bright present. The future isn't guaranteed & God has called me to be a difference maker NOW. The future needs to have bright potential b/c if it doesn't then either I'm not doing a good job or I've maxed out my potential & my potential needs to continue to increase until I get to heaven!

I don't know about you, but I'm not going to patiently sit & wait on my bright future, I'm going to give it my all to shine bright today & hope for the opportunity to shine bright tomorrow.

(Disclaimer: I don't over-analyze every comment. I need to be encouraged & take genuine compliments to heart. And I hope he was right about my future.)