The Mirror of the Word and other works by C.E. White can be purchased on her website, cewhitebooks.com or on Amazon

“Are you seeking great things for yourself? Do not seek them.”

—Jeremiah 45:5

Jeremiah’s scribe Baruch was feeling sorry for himself, like God hadn’t honored him for his faithfulness. He didn’t trust that his eternal reward was worth it; he wanted earthly rewards now.

Don’t we all do this to some extent when life gets hard? “But I’ve been doing my best to follow you, Lord. Why did you let this happen? Why do I continue to struggle?”

This often reveals our motives and where we’ve put our heart’s desire. We were hoping for an earthly reward—seeking great things for ourselves rather than seeking God and his righteousness.

God isn’t being harsh by pointing out the misguided motives; he goes on to remind Baruch that judgment is coming on all this world, so it’s not the place Baruch should put his hopes.

Our earthly ambitions are based on fleeting things that are passing away—all flesh is like grass and withers away (Isaiah 40:6–8). The great things we generally seek for ourselves are vain attempts to get something that will not last, but God wants us to receive real, lasting rewards.

When we begin to feel resentful of the path God’s put us on, may we ask ourselves, “Whose kingdom am I building?”

His kingdom is the only one that will last, and only he knows what steps we should take to help build it. We only know what we desire, but he knows what truly matters and will show us how to walk in the good works he’s prepared for us (Ephesians 2:10).

May we seek to be faithful rather than great and to receive the often unseen eternal rewards of the Lord.

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