Belonging to a Better Master

Success is a fickle master. Just ask Dan McCarney. When he took over as head coach at ISU, he started at the cellar of Division 1A. He worked and worked and somehow willed the Cyclones to an 9-3 record in 2000, including their first-ever bowl win. I remember Sage Rosenfels, JJ Moses, and Chauncey Billups leading the way as the Cyclones beat up on Pittsburgh. I remember driving home from my friend's house in Ankeny--it was a cold snowy night and the roads were terrible. But I didn't care. Iowa State had finally won a bowl game. The guy had done the previously unthinkable--he had achieved success. The fans lined up to shake his hand and pat him on the back.

Fast-forward to this past Saturday. Kansas 41, Iowa State 10. The guy who brought winning is now the guy who can't find a win to save his job. It is a good reminder of how short-lived and precarious success can be in this life. Here one day, gone the next. And you can list example after example of people who thought they had found "it" (whatever that "it" might be to them), and then--poof! Gone.

I'm thankful there is a better master than Success. Jesus has given us an approval that doesn't depend on our merits. If we belong to Him, something remarkable happens. When we sit down for our annual review with the Father, He throws our "accomplishments" in the trash bin and grabs Jesus' file. Scanning down the page, He smiles and looks up. "Well done, good and faithful servant."