Week 18 | Trust God and Do Good

NBA star Damian Lillard once said, “If you want to look good in front of thousands, you have to outwork thousands in front of nobody.”

To be great at anything, you have to put in the work, and most of the time that work is done in front of nobody. No cell phones, no social media, and no audience; just you and the work.

And then when you have success, celebrate your success humbly, recognize that your hard work pays off, give praise to God, and keep working.

Fall in love with the process of working hard and getting better, and let your success do the talking for you rather than going around and telling everybody how great you are.

In Jesus’s famous Sermon on the Mount, he said:

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven (Matthew 6:1).”

Jesus then said:

“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you (Matthew 6:2-4).”

Work hard, do good work, and be good to people, but you don’t have to go around telling everybody how hard you work, or all of the good things you do, or all of the good things you do for other people.

Previously, in Matthew 5, Jesus taught that righteousness includes what is in our hearts - our thoughts and attitudes - as much as our outward actions.

Trust in the Lord, and do good. Remain faithful. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm‬ ‭37:3-4‬).

Do the right thing, not to be seen by others, but because it is the right thing to do. Doing the right thing brings glory to God. Don’t do things just to be seen or for the approval of others. Do things to seek the approval of God, and he will continue to bless you (Isaiah 61:7).

THIS WEEK

1 - What is one thing that you can do every day this week, in silence and on your own, that is going to get you closer to your goals or dreams?

2 - Who is one person or teammate that you can do something for without sounding a trumpet and telling the world about what you did?

3 - What is one thing that is keeping you from doing something that you need to do to get closer to reaching your goals?

4 - Find a quote or Bible verse that can help you overcome that barrier and take the next steps toward reaching your goals.

In Psalm 37:3, it is written, "Trust in the LORD and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper." Trust God and do good. This is my go-to verse for this week. This week, I commit to putting God first by taking time each morning to pray and read my Bible, and by trusting God and doing good. I will find ways to do good things for others because it is the right thing; not because I want to receive a reward for it.

What will you commit to doing?

For a Google Doc version of this devotional, click here: Trust God and Do Good