A Reporter once asked a woman from the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra: “How does it feel to get a standing ovation from the crowd at the end of your performance and then wake up in the morning to a negative review in the newspaper?” She said over time she has learned not to pay attention to the applause of the crowd or the disapproval of the critics. She was only after the approval of her conductor.

“Look, I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as serpents and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16 CSB).

A Lebanese proverb states, “A donkey is still a donkey even if he carries the sultan’s riches.” No matter how much money, property, and possessions God allows us to have in this short life, we are still a human being, created by God, and have sinned against Him causing our own spiritual death. No matter how much of God’s riches you or I carry around with us in this life, we are still who you are.

Last week my wife and I prepared for the arrival of thirty guests. We so looked forward to their arrival. We got the yard cleaned up. My wife made desserts. The house was clean and neat. We anticipated the conversation, fellowship, and joy when they arrived.