Some of our Disappointment, Discouragement, and Despair can come from using the wrong dictionary when it comes to defining success or accomplishment. In an age where we are constantly being bombarded with what success wears, drives, vacations, and we are even blasted with emails about the habits of successful people. Whose dictionary are they using when they define success? Are the habits they are touting as success makers going to bring you real success, or just success according to their dictionary? I love the saying I read recently that said; Some people are so poor, all they have is money.
Joshua 1:8 KJV – “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.”
According to God’s definition, a successful person is someone who focuses on living according to God’s word all the time and tries to do the things written in it. A successful man is one who loves his wife as Christ loves the church if he is married. A successful woman is one who views virtue as being prosperous. A successful person in God’s economy is not measured by their checkbook but by God’s book. Many of our disappointments, discouragements, and despairings would be eliminated just by getting a new definition of success and prosperity.
Proverbs 31 says a virtuous woman of more desirable than rubies, and Psalm 37:23 says; “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way.” I have often said; You can’t steer a parked car. You have to be taking steps to have them ordered and directed by the Lord. It is a good thing to have dreams and aspirations, I dare say it is even a God thing. But, I can also say that even in vocational ministry, there are things we hope and wish for that don’t happen the way we wish they would or not when we wish they would. This is where understanding and believing that God is proactive when it comes to the plan for your life becomes essential to our thinking. I also think it important to remember, and this is a tough one, your plans aren’t ever better than God’s. If you are His child, He is going to guide and direct you along the way, and one thing I have learned over the years as I pursued God’s will for my life is that He is faithful to put up stop signs and close doors when I get out in front of Him. When He shuts a door, no one is going to get it open. (Revelation 3:8)
God is not just watching over you, Christian, He is watching out for you too. He has a vantage point you don’t have, He sees your whole life, and all you can see is this moment. He isn’t trying to make life miserable for you or as hard on you as possible. He is always doing what is best for you, and that includes keeping you from things that could cause you to stray from him, including things this world calls success. I truly believe that: Someday we are going to thank God for all the closed doors and times He said no to our requests because we will understand fully His will was best and right all along, and ours was not only less than the best, it could have been disastrous. We have all read the stories of lottery winners or sports heroes and movie stars who made it big but whose lives are a catastrophe. They change marriages like they change clothes, and many of them blow through money so fast that they are broke by the time their careers end. It is not so with God’s plan for you. They never turn out that way!
