Hail Caesar!

Does the name Caesar Cardini ring a bell? No? Well, I will give you a hint, he wasn't a Roman ruler nor a Mafia Don. His name may not be familiar, but I would venture to guess that most of you are familiar with what he is famous for... the Caesar Salad! Wow. Woohoo. Who cares? So, you are one question smarter in the game of Trivial Pursuit. But as I was enjoying a Caesar salad with my family and friends, I was reminded of a truth that God has been teaching me in my daily readings through the book of Kings and even in my studies in Romans.

Repeatedly, throughout both books of Kings, one of two phrases comes up in these chronicles of the lives of the kings of Israel and Judah. The beginning of the account of their life either reads, "He did evil in the eyes of the LORD..." or "did what was right in the eyes of the LORD...". Some of these life records are short, even as short as a few days, some of them are long lives filled with evil or good deeds. Later in Romans 1, in the middle of Paul's salutation, verse 8 heralds the same truth that challenges me at the core of my being. "First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, because your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world." The faith of the church in Rome, was being talked about in places all over the known world. That is a real wow!! Anytime I begin thinking that I am all that, I read something like this that really humbles me. I am not sure that people in my community have heard about my faith let alone folks all across the world. And yet, that is what we are called to be- light and salt in the world.

Is the way I love my wife and kids talked about elsewhere? Is the way that I spend God's money in a godly, responsible way part of my legacy? Do people hear about how my work is glorifying to God? Peter instructs the church to live such good lives that people around us take notice and glorify God and give ear to our witness of God's work in our lives.

I may not create the latest greatest salad, but I want to live my life in such a way that people glorify God in years to come. What will you be known for?