We all have dreams, goals, and aspirations that we work hard on everyday to achieve, but have you ever wondered if you are chasing the right trophy? If all your hard work was what God had originally planned for you to do? How can we know if we are under God’s will and not our own?

All these questions and worries continued to fill up my mind as I prayed to God and asked him to help me decide what I should do with my future. I was in a battle of pursing a great business career, or choosing to answer to the call and purpose that God has prepared for me.

There will come a time in our lives when we will have to make the choice — the path of which to direct our lives to. It will require us to let go of even the good things in our lives that just were not the best things for us. So how do we know if we are chasing the right goals and dreams? There is only one criteria we need to determine if we are under God’s will:

To glorify his kingdom and spread his good news.

Money should not be the driving force of the choices you make in life. Nothing else should stand against putting Jesus first in your life. Make Jesus be the reason for everything you do. God did not ask us to choose the path of life that seeks for the most money, but to choose the life that shares Jesus to the most people.

He asked us to seek his kingdom first, then everything else will be provided. Matthew 6:31-33 says, “So do not worry, saying ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’…But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

Satan will plant in your mind all the worries of life, hoping to distract you from worrying about the most important thing in life – you call and purpose from God. He will make you worry about your financial stability because he wants you to make choices based off of the lies and worries of this world. But I encourage you to see past those worries and make choices based off of the trust in your calling from God.

I used to think that missionaries, pastors, or even my friends who dedicated 40 hours a week to serve God were crazy. I felt that they were all missing out in life; they could have done other jobs and gained more money. But little did I know that it was actually me who was missing out in life. I learned that there is greater joy in knowing your special calling and purpose in Christ. It is a unspeakable joy that nothing in the world can compare to.

Matthew 7:14 says, “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Only a few people in this world find the beauty of that narrow path of sacrificing their life to Jesus, and only a few people live out their calling in Christ.

Don’t compare yourself to the majority of the people you will find in this world. It is true that there are more people on this earth pursuing their own desires and ambitions, but look to the few because it is only the few who truly find the right trophy of life – Jesus.

Ask yourself this: What is the main thing you are chasing in life? What is the trophy of your life? Is it money? Pride? Respect? Or is it God? The lust of money and the ambitions of this world may seem to be attractive, but they are all lies and distractions from Satan. Satan knows the great plans that God has for you, and he will do everything he can to make you think less about God.

My pastor always says, “Don’t let Satan repurpose you from the purpose that God has for you.” Live your life chasing God and nothing else. Look to few and not the many, because it is the few who have truly found the beauty of life. So remember, make Jesus the trophy of your life.