No good deed...

Jesus said to his disciples: “Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father. When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets to win the praise of others. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right is doing, so that your almsgiving may be secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

“When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you. Matthew 6:1-6 (NAB)

We've all been through it. You go out of your way to do something for someone, to make a real difference, and your efforts are met with a mix of indifference, hostility, and entitlement. After all, no good deed goes unpunished. And if you've done it for someone once, well, you own it, and it expected from now on.

In some cases, your attempts to serve someone--to be a decent human being and try to make things easier--sow seeds of contempt. After all, if you're my servant, I'm entitled to the service and get to it!

So why bother? Why go the extra mile? If I'm going to get hostility in return for my efforts, why make the effort?

When I read this passage of Gospel, it turned the entire scenario around. Prayer isn't just what you do on your knees in your room with the door shut, or before meals, or at church on Sunday. Prayer is the active use of what you have to serve God and those around you, as well. And if you pray, you do it for others, but for Him, too. And if you do the nice things for people and they thank you and notice, then you have gotten a reward, which is always nice. But if you do something nice and you are met with indifference or hostility, it's still noticed. Your heavenly Father sees and appreciates that, and will reward it.

So it's not a pointless exercise. On the contrary, it's a very important exercise. For when God came to earth in human form, He received no less, and look at the results of that. Doing good is as valuable a thing as there is, even when it's met with hostility.