What does it mean to be successful? How do you measure success in your life and work? How do you know when you’ve met a successful person? 

Growing up, I thought success was making good grades. It wasn’t always knowing that I had done my best, but that I had made an A in the course. Anything less was considered a failure. Success meant winning the race or occasionally running my best time. Success meant being the best in whatever I did. After physical therapy school, success meant climbing my way up the career ladder and being an active member of the physical therapy profession. 

Thinking about the list now, I laugh because I see how ridiculous that sounds. Those standards set someone up for failure, along with feelings of inadequacy.  At the same time, I am sad because I realize how much I missed out on because I strove after the wrong things. In that I see I missed out on some key relationships and opportunities because I was competing rather than working together with someone for a common purpose. 
I’d like to say that when I really started to know Jesus those ideas of success changed. They did somewhat, but I’m realizing those same ideas still linger in the back of my mind, and it surely has created a lot of tension in myself and likely in others.

 I’ve even been thinking about my perception of success, and what I’ve seen from others in church, ministry, and missions. Whom do we think are the most successful and most worthy of praise, prayers and support? Could it be our ideas aren’t much different from what I described earlier? Maybe we’ve just glossed them over with “Christian” words and actions? Have we become more like the Pharisees than like Jesus?

I’m tired of trying to be successful by the way I have defined it. I’m purposing to take up a new definition of success because if I look at what the Bible says about success, I see it doesn’t look like what I’ve described. In fact, the most successful people in the Bible often look the most unsuccessful. Jesus, the King and Savior of the world, was crucified on the cross, a disgraceful and horrific way to die, alongside the criminals of the day. Yet, what appeared to be unsuccessful to the world at that time turned out to be the most successful event in history, when God restored the way to the relationship with Him that was broken.

In the Old Testament the prophets, following what God called them to do, often experienced much pain and suffering. The disciples didn’t fare much differently in the New Testament. If we want a good idea of success, look at the descriptions provided in Hebrews 11, the examples or heroes of the faith, as it is sometimes titled. 

My new definition of success is knowing and following Him. Success is knowing, to the best of my limited ability to know, that each thing I do is a step of faith following Him, regardless of what it looks like on the outside. Success means I’ve taken the time to sit with, rest in, and hear His voice. I’ve trusted what He says and am following Him in all that I do. The results may not be measured as successful, but , for me, that is true success, and one day I hope to hear his approval for what I’ve done, which means far more than any human praise and acclamation.