Success. Goals. Achievement. These are words we hear frequently—more so at the beginning of a new year. People may define success in many different ways, whether in relation to career advancement, position, wealth, or reaching one’s goals, as it is often defined in contemporary culture. For Christians, there is a much bigger picture when it comes to measuring success, which is about living in a way that is pleasing to God and blesses others.
The Bible often uses the metaphor of bearing fruit in reference to the outcomes of our lives and our actions and decisions. The book of Proverbs teaches that “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and the one who is wise saves lives” (Proverbs 11:30 NIV). Jesus also used metaphors of planting and sowing and bearing fruit in His teachings (Matthew 13:3–9; John 15:1–8). He said: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5 NIV).
When we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we enter into a life partnership with God, and remaining in Him and bearing fruit includes things such as:
- Having a deep and transformative relationship with God that results in the manifestation of the fruits of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22–23).
- Being a loving spouse and parent, a good coworker, friend, and neighbor (Luke 10:29–37).
- Being a faithful ambassador of Christ in our interactions with others (2 Corinthians 5:20).
- Manifesting honesty, integrity, generosity, and reliability (2 Peter 1:5–9).
The start of a new year is a good time to reflect on these points and to consider other values that would contribute to our personal “success factor” as Christians. God measures success very differently from how the world does, and the formula Jesus gave for greatness flips the narrative altogether: “It is the one who is least among you all who is the greatest” (Luke 9:48 NIV). He also told His disciples, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all” (Mark 9:35 NIV). Biblical success is found in pleasing and glorifying God through our lives and actions, and in loving and serving Him and others.
These qualities cannot be developed and maintained through willpower and discipline alone. Our relationship with the Lord, and time spent in reading His Word, and prayer and worship play a vital part in how we live our lives and the decisions we make. Like most good things in life, a close relationship with God doesn’t come easily. We have to make time for the things that matter, as the following Bible passage teaches:
“Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her’” (Luke 10:38–42).
Developing and investing in our relationship with the Lord is of eternal and lasting value. If we are to truly love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and mind, we need to place the Lord in first place in our lives, and “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). We can assess what place He holds in our lives by considering how we invest our time, what our prayer life and time studying God’s Word looks like, and whether we strive to pattern our lives after Jesus’ life and teachings.
If we’re serious about having a life partnership with God, we need to dedicate time to building it. No matter how things may be going for us, how much success we enjoy, how fit and healthy we are, or how wonderful a family we have, we need the Lord’s help and the infilling of the Holy Spirit to fulfill God’s purpose for our lives. Growing in our dependence on the Lord is a lifelong process, which we often learn best as we weather challenges, setbacks, and difficulties.
Life can be very busy, filled with deadlines, responsibilities and tasks that require our immediate attention, to the point that for many of us each day is a race against the clock. If we aren’t careful with how we invest our time, the inconsequential things of life can crowd out the things that are worthwhile and that will last forever. Temporal things can end up consuming our time, while God and His Word are crowded into a secondary place. When this happens, our lives can be thrown out of balance.
It is helpful to periodically ask ourselves: Are the great realities of life and my eternal future in proper perspective? Do I have a sense of the eternal values? Am I investing in the things that will last? As Jesus said, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven. … For where your heart is, so will your treasure be” (Matthew 6:20–21).
Each day we are faced with many decisions, most of which are likely mundane and often nothing dramatic, and consequently we might not realize how important our day-to-day choices may be to our future—both here on earth and in heaven. With so many other demands for our time and attention, keeping our spiritual lives in focus is no small task. Much of what surrounds us in the temporal world is at odds with the spiritual life and won’t last, as “the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:17).
How you live your life and how you spend your time and finances are indicators of your true priorities and your investment in living in partnership with God. The choice to live by a Christian value system and to seek eternal rewards above immediate gains or satisfaction is one that requires commitment and sacrifice. It may take giving up something of lesser importance to make room for things of greater importance. Aligning our life to biblical principles and eternal priorities requires making intentional decisions about our time, our plans for the future, and our everyday activities.
As Christians, we have the privilege of living in relationship with the Master of the universe, who has promised us an eternity of joy in His presence (John 17:3). We know the truth, we have peace in our hearts, we have the treasure of God’s Word in the Bible. We have the privilege and calling of sharing the good news of His love and salvation with others. Our names are written in His book of life, a cause for endless rejoicing (Luke 10:20). He has promised to bless and provide for us and guide us, as we seek to walk with Him and work in close partnership with Him.