“Success and failure reveal nothing about our spirituality.”

A thought by Larry Osborne, (2009-04-10) from his book, Spirituality for the Rest of Us: A Down-to-Earth Guide to Knowing God (p. 161). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

This is an area we usually use as a test of our spiritually but it’s not a good test.

Larry says, “Whether I'm succeeding or failing has little or nothing to do with whether I'm on the right path. Yet most of us tend to judge our relationship with God by how things are going. When everything goes well, we assume we're on pretty good terms. If we're on a roll, it's because he's really pleased. When the roof caves in, we wonder what we did to tick him off. But success and failure reveal nothing about our spirituality. Even being used mightily by God is not a sure sign we're on good terms.”

Go back in the Old Testament and read the stories of Job or Samson. Larry says, “Based on the visible short-term results, we'd never guess that Job was the apple of God's eye or that Samson was displeasing God with his pursuit of forbidden women, while still winning great battles for God.”

He then says, “The results I'm experiencing—whether good, bad, or ugly— prove nothing. God's plan and handiwork have always been hard to see in the moment. They're best viewed and evaluated through life's rearview mirror, often long after we've passed through a particularly treacherous valley or enjoyed the pleasures of fleeting success. The only sure and reliable sign that I'm on good terms with God is my obedience to his commands and laws. This alone proves that I know him and love him.”

As Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.”

Larry then says, “Success’s great miscalculation is the assumption that it always springs from God's favor—and the greater the success, the greater his favor. The truth is, success springs from many sources. God's favor may or may not be one of them. Most Christians know this—on an intellectual or theological level. But the connection between success and God's blessings is so deeply ingrained that when real life happens, we quickly forget.”

Success is not the key. Obedience is what he wants.

So how are we doing?

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