MONUMENTS TO OURSELVES
Grief-stricken over the death of his wife Sarah in 1930, John Milburn Davis commissioned a sculptor to erect an elaborate statue of the couple, sitting on a love seat. Impressed by his ingenuity, the wealthy farmer constructed more effigies, including a likeness of him kneeling at her grave holding a wreath. But he wasn’t finished. A final statue depicted Sarah, with angel wings, kneeling at his future grave.
With no children and few friends, Davis poured his life’s savings into this staggeringly expensive monument. His fellow citizens of Hiawatha, Kansas pleaded with him to direct his funds toward benefiting humanity, since the town was lacking a hospital. But he refused. Instead, he chose to build a monument to himself. Davis died in 1947 at the age of ninety-two, an angry, lonely man. His cherished memorial is slowly sinking into the soil, victimized by vandalism.
This story hits me like a blast of Arctic air. Is this all there is? Why are we even in this world? We build monuments to ourselves, which soon fade into dust. Isn’t there more? Yes, there is.
In Matthew 16:26, Jesus uttered perhaps the most profound words in human history. “What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?” (NLT). Compared to eternity, this life is a millisecond. But even within this millisecond, like Farmer Davis, if I amass a fortune, devoid of relationships, I’ve lost my very essence, my soul. I’m a hollow shell, clutching the dust of emptiness.
Years ago, a prominent professor passed away, after serving on staff at a university for twenty years. Well respected by his colleagues, he had reached the pinnacle of success. Following his death, the department chairman read a five-minute eulogy, and then asked the staff to bow for one minute of silence.
As they bowed, a Christian professor silently prayed, “Lord, is this what it all comes down to? We sweat and worry and labor to achieve a place in life, to impress our fellow men… Then finally, even for the brightest among us, all these experiences fade into history, and our lives are summarized with a five-minute eulogy and sixty seconds of silence.”
Profound thoughts. Let’s all ask ourselves the same question. Let’s remember the words of Jesus. Let’s not waste our lives on monuments to ourselves.
Principle: What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?
Ponder:
In what specific areas of life do I tend to build monuments to myself?
How can I remind myself of the emptiness of focusing on the things of this world?
Pursue: For a deeper dive, study Matthew 16:24-27.
Prayer: “Lord, the world is continually enticing me, pulling me away from total allegiance to you. Please remind me of the folly of building monuments to myself.”
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