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Michael Vick, the star quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons, shocked the owner of the team, as well as peers and sports fans around the world, when it was revealed that he had been involved in dog fighting and possibly racketeering. Why did he do it? What was he thinking? How long had he been involved in that underground activity?
The adrenaline in his blood when he led his team to victory was the same adrenaline that rushed through his veins when he saw one dog maul and kill another. The Bible and history give us all the evidence we need to be aware that all of us can make some very wrong decisions.
When we are successful, we must not rely on success, but trust in the God who has given us our gifts. Know that for some reason we have been given a sacred trust. Trust the Creator daily and know that whether we have much or little, His love for us will never change. He is not impressed with our wealth, education, or power.
He is impressed by our sincere trust of Him. Human reason is one of the most admired idols of the intellectual world.
Heresies such as situation ethics, reasoning about when life begins or is to end , or even the existence of a personal God are begun in the thoughts of people we often admire as the brilliant thinkers of the day. With pride at the very core of our nature, man would like nothing more than to be his own god.
Find a teaching that encourages the wonderful abilities of a person in his own eyes, and he will be a glutton at its table. When God grants success, He intends for it to be used for His advantage. Our success can be the tool that will help people individually or collectively. It can also be used for wrong motives or behavior, and for selfishness.
God created us to be successful, but what is His definition of success? Is it all about what you own or how much money you have? Is it about education, politics, or being the CEO of a Fortune company?
These are common definitions of value and worth. But, it is deeper than that. While God desires all of us to be successful, we need to understand not only His definition of success, but also where it comes from. Others can observe our lives or look at what we own, where we live, where we work, or what we drive and think that we are not successful.
The appearance of success or failure can be a tricky deception. He was reduced to the stature of a slave by his jealous brothers. They thought he was trying to manipulate them into thinking he was superior because he told them about a wonderful dream God had given him.
They began to resent him, and that resentment grew to a point where they wanted him to die.
Since one of the brothers desired to help Joseph and not to kill him, they decided to sell him to a caravan of people going to Egypt. When he arrived, he was put on the auction block and sold into a life of slavery. The person who bought Joseph had a wife who wanted to have an affair with him and falsely accused him of attempted rape. It was assumed that Joseph was guilty and he was put into prison. His life appeared to be in utter chaos. But, the opposite was true.
God knew exactly where Joseph was and what he was going through. Because Joseph honored God in all that he went through, God honored him. Joseph was eventually considered a successful young leader. But, because of circumstances, overnight he appeared to be a failure. Then, after many years of trial and hardship, he became successful again.
Because he refused to become bitter in life and refused to blame his brothers for his difficulties, God blessed him. Joseph literally saved tens of thousands of lives and was recognized as a gifted and wise leader. He had received the respect of the most influential people in the land. During his roller-coaster life, Joseph maintained one characteristic: Whether he was a leader, a prisoner, or a person of tremendous power, he remained faithful and relied on the knowledge that God was with him.
He just knew that no matter what, God was with him. Adversity can be a greater blessing than affluence. Pressure, challenges, and difficulties can be the hands that mold us to be better people and better leaders. Hardship can be a greater gift than a life without pain or rejection. The very thing that most people desire and strive for — success — can be the greatest challenge they will ever face. If you have what you feel is success in your life, understand that your blessings, gifts, and talents come from God. He has given you talents and favor for a purpose.
Many people define success in different ways than God does. What we own, how much money we make, or how much we have invested could mislead us into thinking that we are on top of our game in life. For this reason, the Bible instructs us:. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. There are masses of unhappy people who have incredible wealth.
Money, possessions, titles, and financial security does not define success. There is nothing wrong with any of these, but when we have them we need to remind ourselves that they could be temporary and certainly will not be something we can take with us when we leave this life. Your email address will not be published. I enjoy graphic design , fiber arts, blogging , photography , reading , crafting, exploring the great outdoors, gardening, raising chickens, homeschooling and more.
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Momentary success, victory, or achievement does not guarantee a stable future. The Creator who gave him more success than any other human, took it away. What had Solomon done to deserve that? He became disobedient, stubborn, and arrogant, and his heart changed. May 25, Janet rated it really liked it Shelves: This book is a must read for anyone that wants to be in a leadership role.
The comparisons of past and current leaders is displayed throughout the book. Breaking down the different qualities that a good leader has, is defined well in the book. The book gives a road map to success as well as the short cuts that leads to failure. I like this book because it gives Godly conviction, if followed correctly you will please God, yourself and family. The choice is yours. Lisa rated it really liked it Nov 15, Jose Viana rated it it was amazing Feb 17, Carter Hemphill rated it liked it Feb 13, Mary rated it really liked it Jul 26, New Leaf Publishing Group rated it it was amazing May 08, Mike rated it really liked it Sep 12, Bookchocolate added it May 14, Chris marked it as to-read May 24, Jclauson marked it as to-read Jul 12, Erika Medina marked it as to-read Aug 28, Theophil Kroller marked it as to-read Dec 17, Stanley marked it as to-read Jan 01, Amber King marked it as to-read May 08, Ruth Munge marked it as to-read Jan 21, Nicholas added it Nov 08, There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Working one or more of those into a personalized LinkedIn invitation to connect will do wonders for your engagement efforts on the platform. His success became his enemy. If not handled correctly it can actually kill you. Momentary success, victory, or achievement does not guarantee a stable future. As an example, I offer a free, copy-and-paste LinkedIn profile template people can use to update and improve their LinkedIn profiles. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. He became disobedient, stubborn, and arrogant, and his heart changed.
Books by Wayde Goodall. Trivia About Success Kills: