SUCCESSFUL OR SIGNIFICANT?

That is the question we must ask of ourselves.

Is it possible we could be leading highly successful lives that are relatively insignificant?

Why is it that so many of us wake up in mid-life with a pit in our stomach, feeling we lack

meaning, value or purpose?

Perhaps it is because in our drive for “success” we have highlighted the temporal at the

expense of that which is truly significant: The eternal.

“Success” in life, as we are inclined to define it, usually relates to secular achievement in a

manner that garners the approval or admiration of our fellow-men.

Jesus cautioned us however:

“What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight… What good will it be for a man if he

gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Luke

16:15b; Matthew 16:26)

“Significance” in life, as God views it, is related to focusing primarily on the eternal: The glory

of God and the Kingdom of God.

The night before the Cross, Jesus prayed to the Father: “I have glorified Thee on earth, I have

finished the work You gave me to do.” (John 17:4)

That is, He had succeeded in building Kingdom values into the lives of the 11 Disciples.

From God’s perspective, our lives are lived in a significant manner when we emulate Jesus’

example:

“He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though

God were making his appeal through us… ” (II Corinthians 5:19b, 20a)

IS MY LIFE SUCCESSFUL OR SIGNIFICANT?

The answer lies in whether I place my primary focus on the temporal or the eternal… On

whether I view my work fundamentally as an opportunity to enhance the Kingdom of

God, or principally as an opportunity to further my personal goals?

The choice, of course, is ours.