The Gap, The Gain, and The Reward You're Forfeiting

I saw a video last week that messed me up.

An influencer was giving out free haircuts and hot meals to homeless people. Camera crew filming everything. The comments were flooded - 100K+ likes, thousands of shares.

"This is what the church should be doing!"

"If the church can preach on Sundays, so can the streets!"

Look - I'm not here to judge that guy's heart. Only God knows that. But watching that video sparked something in me that I needed to work through.

I felt something shift in my chest. A familiar voice started whispering:

Look at all those likes. He's out there serving. What are you doing? Why aren't you out there right now?

I had fallen into what Dan Sullivan and Dr. Ben Hardy call "The Gap." (The Gap and the Gain… a book I highly recommend)

Here is the concept:

The Gap measures you against an ideal you'll never reach.

The Gain measures you against where you started.

I was in the Gap, measuring myself against a highlight reel I didn't have the full story on.

But the next morning during my daily reading I was lead to what Jesus said.

The Reward You're Losing

"Watch out! Don't do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven" (Matthew 6:1).

Wait. Lose the reward?

That's not just about missing out on applause. That's about forfeiting actual eternal rewards.

We’ll get back to that but I kept reading:

"When you pray, don't be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get" (Matthew 6:5).

"But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you" (Matthew 6:6).

Jesus isn't against helping people. He's against performing help for applause.

There's a difference between serving people and filming yourself serving people for likes or to gain social equity.

As with most things, its a heart posture. You can fake that with man but not with God.

Anyway back to these rewards…

What rewards are we talking about? Me being curious I went into research-mode.

Scripture mentions five specific crowns believers can receive in heaven:

The Imperishable Crown - for those who exercise discipline and self-control (1 Corinthians 9:25)

The Crown of Rejoicing - for those who lead others to Christ (1 Thessalonians 2:19)

The Crown of Righteousness - for those who long for Christ's return (2 Timothy 4:8)

The Crown of Glory - for faithful shepherds and leaders (1 Peter 5:4)

The Crown of Life - for those who endure trials and persecution (James 1:12, Revelation 2:10)

But here's what gets me: Jesus also talks about "treasures in heaven" separate from crowns.

"Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal" (Matthew 6:20).

When you do good deeds publicly to be admired, you exchange eternal treasure for temporary likes. You get your reward now - applause, followers, comments - and forfeit what God was storing up for you in heaven.

That's the trade. Likes now or crowns later. You can't have both.

Whats Really Going On

So am I really doing nothing? Or do I just not have a cameraman?

Depends on where I’m standing… in the Gap or the Gain. Sometimes it feels like I’m not doing enough. My homeboy, who I loaned my car for 8 months, would say different.

The church in my neighborhood opens a food bank every Friday morning. The line stretches for miles. Anyone can get the groceries they need. They don't advertise it. They don't film it. They just show up.

That's not sexy. That's not viral. But that's storing up treasure in heaven.

Giving a person one hot meal is great!

Being there week after week, helping them get housing, job training, addiction recovery - that's tedious, thankless work.

Week after week, churches counsel through divorce, help with rent, run recovery programs, provide childcare for single moms. The grinding, unsexy work that doesn't photograph well.

But that is the call. Not a marketing tactic for likes.

The Secret Place Pattern

There is a pattern in scripture about praying in the secret place, not letting your right hand know what your left is doing, etc.

Praying early mornings before daybreak, just like Jesus: "Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray" (Mark 1:35).

Nobody sees that. No likes. No comments.

Recently I was reading Isaiah 40, and one line stopped me: "Who else has held the oceans in his hand?" (Isaiah 40:12).

I had to meditate on it and then shared what I learned.

Almost 23k views in a day (my average is around 1k -2k) . Comments from people who were encouraged, set free, reminded of God's greatness.

One person said: "Thank you for putting this into perspective. I'm overwhelmed from time to time with life and reading this reminds me of how great our Heavenly Father is."

Just what God whispered in the secret place that I shouted from the rooftops.

Jesus said: "What I tell you now in the darkness, shout abroad when daybreak comes. What I whisper in your ear, shout from the housetops for all to hear!" (Matthew 10:27).

Secret place first. Public platform second

What's Done in Secret Will Be Rewarded Openly

My song "Never Let Up" is up for radio rotation on Holy Culture Radio (SiriusXM) - one of the biggest Christian Rap stations in the world!

The message of faith and discipline that I write about week after week could reach millions… overnight.

That's what happens when you work in the secret place. God brings the public reward.

I didn't chase influencer clout. I didn't film myself helping people. I stayed in my lane, did what God called me to do, and trusted Him with the platform.

Please vote for my song: 👉🏾 https://holyculture.net/weight-or-wait/weight-or-wait-voting-show-october-7-2025/

No sign-up required. My song is #6.

The Difference Between Ministry and Marketing

I know the tension. "Aren't you writing publicly about not doing things publicly?"

Here's the difference: I'm not trying to prove I'm a ‘good person’. I'm sharing what God taught me in the secret place because He told me to shout it.

I'm not asking for applause for my deeds. I'm asking for votes on a song that points people to Jesus.

I'm not measuring my worth by likes. I'm measuring obedience by whether I'm doing what God whispered.

There's a difference between performing for people and proclaiming what God said.

Where Are You Measuring From?

Are you in the Gap or the Gain?

Are you measuring yourself against influencers with camera crews, or where God brought you from?

Are you doing good deeds to be seen, or doing what God whispered in the dark?

The Gap makes you feel you're not doing enough. The Gain reminds you how far God brought you.

What's done in secret will be seen by the Father. And you will be rewarded openly.

Not necessarily with likes or accolades but with crowns that last forever.

What are you going to do with that weight?

What has God whispered in the secret place that He's asking you to shout from the rooftops?

One Last Thing

Please vote for my song - not for validation, but because the message matters.

"Never Let Up" is about staying rooted when circumstances say give up.

👉🏾 https://holyculture.net/weight-or-wait/weight-or-wait-voting-show-october-7-2025/

Song #6. Takes 10 seconds. No sign-up required.

Thank you for helping me to bring God’s Word to a wider audience! I appreciate you!

That’s it for today

keep JOY, live Disciplined