So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love. – 1 Corinthians 13:7
***
Success has all sorts of definitions, the most common ones having to do with public recognition. I do a good job, I get a gold star. I win a new client, I get a promotion. I successfully complete a project, I get a bonus. Nothing’s quote-on-quote wrong with those things, but they aren’t my metrics of success. I’m after something else entirely.
***
I’m after a success that’s rooted in godly character. I pursue it before anything else. I choose excellence because God calls me to do work that’s to the praise of His glory. I don’t hog the spotlight because He is the one who should shine. If I shine, it’s because I’ve asked Him to work in and through me. What people should see is a dim reflection of the One who overflows my heart with a good theme.
***
Success: addressing my verses to the King.
***
When I fail to show God’s glory, it isn’t His fault. I’ve simply forgotten who I am and to what I am called. He has transformed me into a light-shining, life-overflowing, praise-giving, walking-in-newness-of-life, overcoming-hell being. When I realize how much He loves me and wants His glory and my good, I’m overcome. I return to the One who matters above all else. I remember that success is found in following His ways, not my own.
***
Success: loving like Jesus loved and proclaiming His truth.
***
Nothing matters without love. I can give all I have to the poor. I can do the best work in the history of mankind. I can speak in languages and move mountains. None of it means anything if I haven’t loved God first and others second.
***
Success: leading a life that glorifies God.
Image: seier+seier (Creative Commons)