Mt 7:21-27
[Jesus said to his disciples:] 21“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. 22Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?’ 23Then I will declare to them solemnly, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.’ 24Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. 25The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. 26And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. 27The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined.”
Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord." Mother Teresa of Calcutta offers this tip for living: the purpose of life is not to be successful but to be faithful. If success is the gauge by which we will be measured, many of us will fail, with all our sins, shortcomings, problems, and issues. Thank goodness, that is not what God expects of us. Even his Son seemed a failure on the cross. But God’s measure is how faithful we have been in our faith, in our relationships, and in our efforts to change or effect change in others.
An old friend priest firmly believes in the mercy of our God that he professes and confesses at his deathbed: When God opens our hearts, God will kindly brush aside our failings and faults. When we meet God finally, God will look at how we have tried to be faithful.
Not all houses will remain standing, not even the strongest of stones. What will remain and will be remembered by God is our faithfulness, how we have tried our best to do his will: to love with care and to care with love. Faithfulness will weather any storm. Let us build on it!