Success!

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

This past week, the world lost the beloved Queen Elizabeth of England. She was the only ruler most of us have known in our lifetime, and the outpouring of love from around the world speaks to her character, her kindness, compassion, and love of country, God, and family. She was a most successful monarch.

In this world of today, we enjoy hearing about the successes of others, and we all pray for successful things in our own lives. It’s uplifting to hear things such as: the surgery was a success, the treatment was a success, our children are successful, our grandchildren are having a successful year, or our business is successful. These successes are important and God should get the glory for each one, but there are other successes that are judged by man which don’t deserve the same adulation.

A small business owner once posted a sign in his store which read: The 57 Rules of Success: Rule One: Deliver the goods; Rule Two: the other 56 don’t matter! Alexandre Dumas said, “Nothing succeeds like success,” which suggests that success will breed more success. If you work hard and achieve your goals, you will be very likely to continue to achieve success. The successful people and things in this world is a wonderful thing, but there are different ways of viewing success.

What is success? Success is defined as the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. The trouble with this kind of success is that many people define it in ways which aren’t aligned with the Christian teachings. There is a difference between what the world considers success and what God sees as success. The world’s success is all about making a lot of money, being popular, and getting your name and face in the media. God would want success to include things such as the wisdom to know when to speak and when to be silent; the ability to teach and be taught; and the courage to know when and whom to fight and when to turn and walk away.

The trouble with success is that it never arrives on its own, but it is rather often preceded by difficulties and accompanied by pain and rejection. Many years in the ministry, several different places we called home, and many different people have taught me that not everyone is always happy when others are successful. Some people have trouble celebrating the success of others because they are jealous of the accomplishment. Successful people are the ones who don’t need all the glory, but rather as Paul says, rejoice with those who rejoice. John Woodman once said, “There is no limit to what can be accomplished if it doesn’t matter who gets the credit.”

The Christian who lives a successful life has a few important characteristics which differ from the world’s perception of success. First, a successful Christian is humble because of the security found in knowing our own strengths and weaknesses and being content with our identity in Christ.

A humble heart leads to an obedient heart which is content with serving, loving, and being faithful. Success to the Christian is complete honesty and integrity in all aspects of life. In order to succeed, every Christian must be strong in the Lord, and courageous enough to face challenges from both the world and the forces of evil.

A successful Christian values the bond of peace and unity above all else in all aspects of life. When we seek peace it lifts Christ above all else and magnifies His name to all the world. One Lord, One Faith, and One Father of all who is over all, in all, and through all.

The following is a great synopsis of what it means to be successful in this life. Ralph Waldo Emerson in his work, To Succeed says: To laugh often and love much; to win the respect of intelligent persons and the affection of children; to earn the approbation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to give of one’s self; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden path or a redeemed social condition; to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sung with exultation; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived – this is to have succeeded. (Thanks to a sweet friend for sharing this work.)