Consider the exchange, spoken between man and God

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“I did my best.”

Really? You did your “best”? There was nothing more you could do; no more sacrifices to make, no more focus in your mind, no more energy spent: you did the very BEST you could do?

“Well, God, I tried to do my best…”

Really? You tried to do all you could do? You said to yourself “I may not pull it off, but I’m not going to leave one stone unturned in my quest to do the best I can!” You said that?

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I think the most reasonable expectation I have of myself is that I will try to try and do my best. You may say that sounds defeatist, or that it is not very aspirational, but the way I see it, my hope is that the older I get, and the more I grow in the faith, that the gap between me “trying to try” and me “trying” shrinks until it is non-existent.

When that happens I will start working on shrinking the gap between “trying my best” and “doing my best.” I don’t think I’m being defeatist; I think I’m recognizing the long way I have to go before I am the man God wants me to be.

But even if I achieve that seemingly-unattainable goal (the goal of always doing my very best, never slacking, never lacking), I know…

So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.

Luke 17:10

…I’m still just unprofitable servant, only doing that which was my duty to do.

All glory be to God!