What went wrong? he tormented.
Seeking out answers to these types of questions is often self-defeating, demeaning, and discouraging. And perhaps, they are the wrong questions to ask in the first place.
The first question that comes to my mind is, “What constitutes true success?” Do you have to earn big wages to be successful? Do you have to own a big house, a luxury car, and occupy a corner office in the downtown high-rise to be successful?” Absolutely not, from everything I’ve ever learned about success.
Success is spiritual. It’s not about money, power, prestige, status and position. It’s about spirituality lived and expressed.
It’s not a wad of cash or bulging stock portfolio that gains access to heaven. It’s spiritual mindedness!
Jesus Christ was clear that the most important things in life are not the physical that corrupt and decay. They may have a temporal role to play in meeting human needs, but they don’t purchase heavenly place and position, the ultimate prize. A person is not a failure if he or she doesn’t “measure up” to mortal mind’s material expectations for success. The individual who is growing in love, wisdom and spiritual understanding is gaining the success that matters most in the long run.
So, whether you march up the corporate ladder or not is insignificant compared to the riches of truth and love you embrace, reflect and live out every day. And there are no limits to how fast you can achieve that type of success. Go for it with gusto. It will help meet the human needs too.
“I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” Paul, Phil3:12-14, NLT
Thanks, Evan, for this important reminder. And the cool part is that spiritually oriented success is so satisfying. It is like how giving a gift feels better than getting a gift.
Measuring success by copying others is so defeating. Honestly, bettering oneself in the understanding of your relationship to God is much more rewarding and 100 times less stressful. One’s accomplishments also would be highly successful when you trust God.