Guest Devotionalist -- Catherine Painter

Your Ticket to Real Success


Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.....My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in." Proverbs 3:5-6, 11-12

George Truett defined success as, “the ability to find the will of God for our lives and doing it.” All of us want success and are disappointed when failure rears its head instead.

I was introduced to failure during grade school. My name was often called last when team captains chose sides for a softball game. Evidently, an athletic career was not God’s will for my life, as I was athletically handicapped. The good news was, however, that I was on the team.

Day after day the balls dodged my glove. Then one day the miracle happened. The batter hit a ball that landed smack into my glove! The game halted, the class roared, and I stood awestruck, knowing I hadn’t caught the ball; I only received the credit.

One day you and I will join heaven’s team spiritually handicapped. We’ll arrive only because, by His grace, Jesus hit the balls and gave us the runs. He ran the race and gave us the trophy; He took the test and gave us the A. On that wonderful day, He won’t say, “Well done, good and successful servant,” but “Well done, good and faithful servant”. He won’t scold us for the games we lost, but reward us for playing by God’s rules, simple enough even a child can understand.

Here they are:
• Admit you’re a sinner (Rom. 3:23).
• Believe in Jesus (John 3:16).
• Commit your life to Christ (Rom. 12:1).

There’s the rub. Have we committed ourselves completely to following God’s rules? Proverbs is crammed with how-to’s for applying wisdom, the ticket to real success in life.

One day we’ll approach heaven, smiling at the sign on the gate: “You did not choose Me, but I chose you.” Jesus won’t ask how many balls we caught or missed. He’ll want to know whether we remained in the game playing by His rules, or grew weary and dropped out, deciding the reward just wasn’t worth the effort.

Are you in heaven’s line-up today? If not, fall in anywhere along the way; but don’t delay. One day the Eternal Time Keeper will stop the clock and time will be no more. Where will you be when the final buzzer sounds?




Catherine Painter is author of the twelve-week Bible study,So, You’re a Christian! Now What? published by Hensley Publishing, Tulsa, OK. Catherine is a columnist for Biblical Recorder, a state religious journal. She writes Sunday School curricula for LifeWay Resources, Nashville. She is available for speaking engagements by contacting her at: 617 Great Pine Way, Raleigh, NC 27614. Email: cspwrites@nc.rr.com Or telephone: (919) 846-1745

Visit her on the web at www.catherinepainterministries.com