By Leah Mason-Virgin
What is success?
Our world is constantly trying to tell us what our worth is and what success is.
The business of this world is mostly about money and power. We are bombarded by messages that tell us that self-worth and success come from the amount of money we have, the clothes we wear, the career we have, etc.
The world rejoices over the message that stress and busyness equals success.
I hear my fellow mamas and friends exclaim how busy they are with a look for affirmation that they are indeed successful and wonderful people.
I spent years dumping obligations are my shoulders. I went to nursing school and gleefully stated how busy I was. Subconsciously looking for affirmation that I was good enough and successful.
I hear mostly women lament that they are not good parents. We receive mixed messages on social media about what a good mother is. Sometimes the message is play with our kids more, sometimes the message is schedule more activities, sometimes the message is work more, clean more, and on it goes.
Our television commercials subtly tell us what success is, what good enough is. The message on television is constantly shifting with a never-ending array of superstars or royals on display to tell us what success is.
All the while I see people yearning for affirmation from others and the badge of success stamped across their head. Busier and busier we become. More obligations, more money spent, less money saved, more complaining about no time for ourselves with a side eye to get the affirmations our soul craves.
I was that person. Now, I'm changing day by day. Sloughing off the stigma of busy equals success. Mindfully choosing the tasks I say "yes" to. Sloughing off the worldly imprint of money, power, position, career equals success. Plugging into the coaching and training sessions through Mom Mastery University builds the right mindset and tears out the garbage that the world pushes into us.
It is not an easy task to dig out ingrained culturally indoctrinated mindsets. It's not easy to stand up against the onslaught of subliminal messages that tell us we are "less than" if we don't have the right clothes, money, career, house, kids, etc.
How can we know what success is? Or rather the question is: What is success?
To know what success is, we must first know that this world and our time in it is just a whisper of wind and then gone. James 4:14 14 You don’t even know if you will be alive tomorrow! For all you are is a mist that appears for a little while and then disappears. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If Adonai wants it to happen, we will live” to do this or that.
While the majority of Americans consume the idea that this is all we have to live for—what we see and do here in this life, we as Christians know that there is so much more after this brief time. But, we often forget to intentionally remind ourselves who we are in Christ and what our lives are meant for. We often forget to be intentionally delving into the word of God to hear what He values and what He sees as success or failure.
When we think about how brief our life here is and what the meaning of our lives are then some clarity can come to our minds. We are tasked to come into a relationship with our creator God and Father. We are called to then work toward God's Kingdom agenda. We can define success by realizing that with a relationship with God we can be His hands and feet. We can feel and define success by what we do according to His will.
I define each and every decision in my life by the desire to have my God tell me "well done, good and faithful servant."
As I study the word of God and listen to the voice that gently hums through my mind, I begin to know what God is calling me to. I know that success is doing His will. I know that success is loving my God with all my heart, soul, and mind—my neighbor as myself, my husband, my children—loving and serving with a holy fierceness that defies this world's understanding.
Each choice, opportunity, option, and interaction are dictated by what I define as success! Success is doing the will of the Lord! Success is showing Christ like behavior and not just words—lip service!
I encourage you today to continue or begin reading the Bible daily—so that you will know what God calls success. Success is only when God can say to us "Well done, good and faithful servant!"
Let's pray: Dear Lord God almighty, You define success. You created us to be Your children and to build a relationship with You and then to You through serving our brothers and sisters. Lord God You see the inward most parts of each of us. You know our hearts and minds. You have called us to serve in our passion area with a vision toward Your kingdom agenda. Lord God please help us to read Your Holy word and to see the world through Your world view. Help us to take off the lense of our culture or socio-economic group and embrace Your vision of each person we encounter. Jesus we long to hear You say "well done, good and faithful servant." Please Jesus help us to love and serve like You. Help us Lord to inquire of You before saying "yes" or "no" to any task, opportunity, or job. In Jesus Christ precious Holy name, Amen!
Verses To Think On:
Matthew 25:23 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
Genesis 39:2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.
Joshua 1:7 Above all, be strong and very courageous to observe carefully the whole instruction my servant Moses commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right or the left, so that you will have success wherever you go.
Judges 18:5 Then they said to him, “Please inquire of God for us to determine if we will have a successful journey.”
1 Samuel 18:14 and continued to be successful in all his activities because the Lord was with him.
2 Chronicles 26:5 He sought God throughout the lifetime of Zechariah, the teacher of the fear of God. During the time that he sought the Lord, God gave him success.
Nehemiah 1:11 Please, Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant and to that of your servants who delight to revere your name. Give your servant success today, and grant him compassion in the presence of this man. At the time, I was the king’s cupbearer.
