The wonderful life or The Road Less Traveled?

A friend of mine is a missionary in another country.  Here is a conversation she recently had with a young lady:  

(young lady) "Why would you leave America and your life to come live here?"

(my friend) I smile and my unprepared answer seems to come from your prayers. "You know, in America," I begin, "I have a wonderful life. I have a nice house, a nice car. I have everything I need and want. But Adelina, I have learned that those things can make you happy for a little while they are not the things that satisfy the soul. They cannot bring significance to your life."

She is looking more intently at me now.

"When my life is over, what will it be about? Will people say, 'Oh, she had nice hair, she had a nice house and a nice life'? Is that what I want my life to count for? I am a follower of Jesus. I believe God is the one who has given me so much. I don't know why He chose to give me this life and not one in another country, but He did. And He gives it to me so that I could share my blessings with others."

  

This friend of mine really is giving up a good life.  A good, temporary life.  Although she was raised with typical upper middle class values, she is not grasping onto that lifestyle.  She knows what's more important.

I am so thankful for friends like her.  We can talk and we speak each other's language.  We both struggle with the same things,  But she is purposefully choosing the Road Less Traveled over her "wonderful life".  

As I talk with different people, there seems to be a growing restlessness with the American Dream as we know it.  This generation - that is probably one of the wealthiest and most pampered generations that have ever lived - sees the emptiness of the frivolous life.  Many are scared to act on their restlessness in a dramatic way - but, I believe,  even small changes can have a huge impact.  

Anyway, I hope that we will all see that, many times, the Road Less Traveled is actually better than "a wonderful life" and that our actions would follow accordingly.