God’s Pathway to Success

January 22, 2017

God’s Pathway to Success

Joshua 1:7

Too often, Christians shy away from the whole idea of success, thinking, I’ll just be grateful for whatever the Lord gives me. Such misguided believers have confused success with greed and discontent. How can this be?

It is because of the overwhelming obsession with the world’s definition of the term. To most people, the word is equivalent to “wealth” or “power.” If you stopped the average person on the street and asked whether he is successful, there’s a good chance he would start talking about his career or investments. He might even make a passing reference to his “15 minutes of fame.” Most people simply have no other frame of reference for the concept. But these parameters have nothing to do with spiritual success.

The heavenly Father calls His children to live triumphantly. If the pursuit of success were sinful, how could the Lord have made the promise found in Joshua 1:7? Was He promising money? No. Was He promising fame? No. The Lord was promising success.

For Joshua, this would mean military victory, steadfast faith, and the fulfillment of God’s promise to Moses. Joshua was not concerned with money or fame; rather, he was intensely focused on accomplishing God’s plan for him. Armed with the power of the Word, Joshua marched boldly ahead and received the Lord’s blessings. And for that, God called him a “success.”

Do not be confused—the trappings of the world have nothing to do with succeeding spiritually. Your family, relationships, integrity, faithfulness—these are the things that work together as a godly way of measuring success.

Bible in One Year: Exodus 19-21