We are fascinated by success. We want it. We make great sacrifices for it.
But what exactly is “it”? Everything around us defines it as graphs that are all “up and to the right.” More revenue. More followers. More growth.
Scripture seems to present an upside-down picture of success. Just consider two case studies: Jeremiah and King Solomon.
The Weeping Prophet
Jeremiah has a whole book of the Bible full of his prophesies. Considered a “successful” prophet, for 40 years Jeremiah had no results. No one listened to him. Yet he faithfully performed the role God had for him.
He wasn’t popular: Buddies from his hometown—and his own kin—plotted to kill him.
Imprisoned twice, one of the times he languished in a dried-out well. Dying a hostage in a foreign land (Egypt), Jeremiah was still preaching to people who wouldn’t listen.
It would be difficult to call this a fruitful ministry. His ministry wasn’t worth celebrating—unless we use a different definition of success.
Israel’s Golden Boy
Contrast this with Solomon.
Solomon had it all—wealth, prestige, and power. It is indisputable that he achieved success in almost every domain.
- Strategic, he united himself with Egypt, marrying the daughter of Pharaoh.
- Business savvy, he saw Israel was prime real estate: Sandwiched between several empires, Israel became the ancient world’s gas station.
- Here’s just one glimpse of the riches Solomon acquired through his business strategies: King Solomon made “silver as common in Jerusalem as stone” (1 Kings 10:27).
Yet, near the end of his life, when he reviewed all of his diplomatic ties, surveyed his vast landholdings and palaces, inventoried all of his wealth, looked at all the good works he had done, Solomon discovered something startling.
It was meaningless.
He writes that it was “a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 2:11)
Success Story?
God has a different measuring stick for success.
Jeremiah had no power while Solomon controlled much of the ancient world. Jeremiah was faithful to God’s call on his life while Solomon was half-hearted. Pursuing greatness, Solomon began to rely on his own gifts instead of seeking God first.
Unlike Jeremiah, Solomon adopted the wrong definition of success. I don’t want to do the same.
Here are just a few ways I know I’m adopting a skewed definition of success:
– When I measure success by numbers rather than whether employees are flourishing and if services are delivered with excellence.
– When I prefer superficial praise from strangers over honest feedback from those who know me best. Proverb 9:7-9
– When I seek to expand the ministry or make significant decisions without prayer.
– When I prioritize my achievements over growing in Christ, and when who I am in Christ seems less important than what I do.
How about you? When do you know you’re on the path towards adopting the wrong definition of success?
