What is success? Is it getting the best grades? Getting the highest paid job? World-wide fame? Maybe that’s how the world views it but God’s definition of success is totally different from the world’s definition. God does want you to be successful, His kind of successful. David’s a great example of this. He started out as a shepherd boy, but God made him King of Israel. The Bible says, ‘In everything he did he had great success, because the LORD was with him’ (1 Samuel 18:14 NIV). God will provide you with all the tools, strategies and relationships that you need to be His kind of successful. Mother Teresa was once asked ‘How can you bear the load without being crushed beneath it?’ She replied: ‘I am not called to be successful; I am called to be faithful.’ With God, being faithful is being successful. Some of us are called to serve in the limelight while others are called to serve behind the scenes. Some of us get rewarded for our achievements while others serve unnoticed and unthanked. That can feel kind of discouraging. But at the end of the day, what matters most is God’s opinion of us. If we’ve served and been faithful to Him, we’re completely successful in His eyes and one day we’ll stand before God and He’ll say: ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ Let’s be people who strive for God’s version of success over and above the world’s.
What now?
Have a look through the Bible and read the stories of people who were described as successful. Notice anything about them? They were successful when they were being faithful to God and following His will.