Success and Failure Blog

When I talk about American Idols, I’m not talking about the TV show American Idol.  I’m talking about the idea of idols.  Idols can be anything.  Some people might have money, a big house, fame, sex as their idol.  Wikipedia’s definition for Idol is “An idol is a man-made object that is worshiped in some way.”

Now, let me stress that there is nothing wrong with sex, fame or having money, etc. in the right context.  Let’s take money for example.  Many well known godly people in the Bible had lots of money and wealth, like Abraham, Solomon, David and many others.  The question is, where is your heart?  Is your money controlling you?  Are you a slave to your money?  Are you focused on just on the accumulation of money?   When money becomes your focus, in other words your idol, it is then when you’re getting into real trouble.

It’s worth thinking about.  First of all, you will never experience lasting fulfilling success if your focus is on money.  Bill Gates did not make his money by focusing on money.  He had a passion for computers and software and money was a side effect of his passion.  Besides failure, having the wrong attitude about money can cost you everything including your soul?  Here is what the Bible says about money and success.

“For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
Matthew 16:26 (NKJV)

Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.  And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”  Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ “  Matthew 4:8-10 (NKJV)

Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?  1 Corinthians 1:20 (NKJV)

But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence.  1 Corinthians 1:27-29 (NKJV)

You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.  1 Corinthians 7:23 (NKJV)

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.  Romans 12:2 (NKJV)

Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.  1 Timothy 6:17 (NKJV)

Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.  James 4:4 (NKJV)

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world–the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life–is not of the Father but is of the world.  And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.  1 John 2:15-17 (NKJV)

“He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.  John 12:25 (NKJV)

The amazing thing is that when we focus on God, he takes care of us.  His promises are amazing for people that focus on him.  He provides true, lasting and enjoyable success.

“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.  Josh 1:8 (NKJV)

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.  2 Cor 9:8 (NKJV)

But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.  He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.   Psalms 1:2-3 (NKJV)

The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe.   Prov 18:10 (NKJV)

then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment,
2 Peter 2:9 (NKJV)

And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.  Phil 4:19 (NKJV)

Frankly, it’s hard to change some of our attitudes like the one about money by ourselves, however, if we ask God, he promises to help us change from the inside out.

Other related articles Success Stories, Addictions and Struggles, Money, How to succeed in tough economic times.

How to succeed in tough economic times – the right kind of treasure

Are we in a recession? A depression? Have you or someone you know faced hard times? You can still succeed, no matter what the economy does.

Let’s look at your worldview.  How do you see the world? I’m not talking about being a Pollyanna, ignoring every possible problem. But, I am talking about figuring out what things are important.

See, we live in a society where there is so much advertising, we tend to look at it and say, “Oh, if I have this latest gadget I’ll feel better.” Or, we think that, “I need a bigger home, bigger car, bigger everything.”  In other words, our worldview is partly shaped by that desire for the newest and best of everything.

But, who told you that newest was best?  Who told you that biggest was best?  Chances are, it was probably a combination of advertising and your friends, many of whom have a lot of that stuff. Or, had it, till the recession, depression, or whatever this is.

The way to succeed in these times is to change worldviews.

It’s really a sweet decision.  All those advertisers have been telling you that you have to have the latest gadget, and that only the newest things are the best, and so on.  You can tell them to forget about their things, which don’t last, which can be broken, lost, or stolen,and which grow old.  And, you can gain rewards that will never grow old, never wear out, never get stolen, and never lose value.

I’m not talking about gold, silver, or anything else here on earth, either.  I’m talking about building Heavenly rewards.  Because, only there can we really have satisfaction.

How do we get these rewards that are free from crashes, free from aging and inflation?  You might have even heard Matthew 6:20, “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.” But, you wonder how to do that.  Here are several basic principles, to help you build those treasures.

1. Have a home up in Heaven.

Think about it.  If you wanted to invest in the stock market, what would you do?  Pick out the right stocks?  Plan your investment strategy?  No, of course not.  You’d open an account.

In the same way, you need to open an account in heaven.  To do that, you need to receive His forgiveness for our sins.

Think of Heaven as a delicious human food, and sins as dog food.  Most people would never eat dog food if they had a choice, especially if it was between that and a delicious meal of whatever your favorite food is.  You’ve got that food all ready to be served, but there’s a problem.  Someone threw dog food into it.  You couldn’t touch that yucky stuff, right?  You’d throw it out in a hurry.

In the same way, anything we bring to the table in Heaven needs to be cleansed.  We need our lives cleansed from sin.  The only way to do that is to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior.  You need to “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” (Acts 16:30) It was “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)  So, you can’t do anything to get those sins cleansed yourself. You need to let Jesus do it for you.  And, you can’t add anything to it, because Jesus Christ saved you by dying on the cross, and rising from the dead, before you ever knew Him.  He had you on His mind when He went to the cross.

So, you need to receive what He did, by simple faith, as taking the whole punishment for your sins.  He shed His blood once, for all; the just for the unjust.  That’s how you have your sins cleansed. Once you’ve received Him as your Savior, you can start earning those rewards in heaven.  Because, you have an account up there.

And, that account can never be taken away.  You are sealed unto the day of redemption, with the Holy Spirit. (Eph. 4:30, 1:14).  That seal can’t be broken.  Nothing can separate you from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. (Rom. 8:38-39)

2. Put Jesus Christ first in your life, and serve Him.

Remember that dog food example, where we compared sin to it?  Your account is secure in Heaven.  That means you can build treasures there, like a chef makes a great meal.  However, sometimes, the “great meal” you build in Heaven have a little “dog food” in it yet.  Obviously, it’s no good then.  How does this happen? It happens when we don’t build in the right way; when we put something else ahead of Jesus.

The things we build here on earth won’t matter in Heaven.  There’s a famous joke that a very rich man, who had trusted Christ as his Savior, asked to bring something with him when he got to heaven.  He was told he could bring one bag, and so when he died, he had that bag stuffed, ready to take it with him.  When he got to the Pearly Gates, St. Peter checked the records, and said, “Okay, I see you were allowed to bring one bag, but I have to check inside.” He opened it, and said, in a shocked voice, “Of all the things you could bring, why would you bring pavement?!” the rich man had brought gold, but gold is useless as pavement up there; it’s what they pave the streets with in heaven!

First Corinthians 3:11-15 tells us the things we do will be tested, to see if they were really for Jesus, or for ourselves.  If you want to gain rewards that will last forever, your goal in life must be to be Christlike, and to glorify God in all you do.  That doesn’t mean that you totally ignore wealth.  If God has gifted you with the ability to make money as a good, honest businessman, you should.  But, what it means is that you use whatever wealth, talent, or time you have to help others, instead of always trying to please yourself.  And, that in helping others, your eye should not be on making yourself look good by doing so.  It should be on showing the love of Christ in helping others.

The beautiful thing is, these are treasures we can earn at any time.  Some people do better with little than they would with a lot.  You are where you are in life, because God has placed you there, or God has allowed you to be there through your choices, so that you can show Godly love, goodness, and so on to others.

These are things we can do no matter what the economy does.  The poorest person on earth could have untold riches in Heaven; but, so could a very rich person. The key is simple. Build your treasures in Heaven. This requires you to put them on the foundation of Jesus Christ, first of all, and to seek, in your heart, to glorify Him by showing others Who He is. Because, we are not here to save the world, though we should try to make the world better where we can.  We are here to save sinners from a lost and dying world.  This world of things will one day vanish. But, the rewards we build in Heaven will last forever.