Minding Your Own Business

“Peter asked Jesus, ‘What about him, Lord?’ Jesus replied, ‘If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You follow me.”
John 21:21-22

This conversation took place during one of Jesus’ appearances after His resurrection. Jesus just told Peter the kind of death that he will experience. Upon hearing it, he looked around, saw John and asked what his future would be. To this Jesus answered, “What is that to you?” In effect, He was saying, “mind your own business.”
Like Peter, we often compare ourselves with others. We wonder why a classmate who never seems to study gets higher grades. We question why we do the hard work and someone else gets the dough. We do exactly what a friend is doing and wonder why we get different results. We always ask, “what about him?” Sometimes we go to the other extreme and make sure that others get their job done. We have become self-appointed watchdogs. The outcome often turns sour because as other people go about their own business, we don’t have our own. We make sure others accomplish their mission for we don’t know ours.
God created us uniquely along with specific purposes. It is our responsibility to find out what our purpose is and live it. We have no business if someone else is living out his/her purpose or not. That is up to them. What matters is that we are living ours.
Try asking yourself, “What are you living for?” I ask myself this question, especially when I don’t feel like getting out of bed and work. I always get the same answer: I am here for others (my family, my friends, my community, the world). I am God’s vessel and instrument of faith, joy, and love. Being reminded of what I am living for gives me energy to get up and live. So mind your own business. In the end, God will not be asking how many people we knew accomplished their purpose. He will be asking what we did to accomplish ours.