The question, “What does success look like?”, came across my path recently. It is a great question and worthy of a few minutes to consider. It was asked in terms of a project and setting goals that were achievable as a measure of success. It is very important to choose something achievable on a path to success. Encouragement to keep going only comes when you realize the goal is within reach.
Success is never found in suspicion or daunting intimidation.
Success is achievement, progress, victory.
Some people spend their whole careers climbing the ladder of corporate success. Some people get success in their multiple friend groups and social influences. Others find success in just making it through the day.
What Does Success Look Like For You?
God’s purpose from before the foundation of the world is to give His creation success. Never has God ever said He wanted to oppress people or suppress people. In every way, He sought to encourage His people, provide a way to free them from bondage, and time and time again created paths of success and stability for them.
GOD WANTS YOU TO SUCCEED! It is God’s plan for you to achieve, progress, and be victorious.
Joshua 1:1-9 provides great instruction for those who want to have “GOOD SUCCESS”. If you want to have not just success but good success, keep reading.
There are only 4 rungs to the ladder of God’s success climb.
- Get Your Plan From God – God’s plan leads to absolute success. “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition” Col. 2:8 Don’t do life just the way it has always been done, or the way you think best. Make sure it is God’s way.
- Realize Victory Is Determined – God told Joshua “There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of the thy life.” Joshua 1:5 Your success has already been accomplished. The victory has already been determined. You are more than a conqueror. (Romans 8:37)
- Know God Is With You – Just as God was with Moses, God was with Joshua. Just as God was with Joshua, God is with you. God has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5 If God go not with us, we don’t want to go. (Ex 33:15)
- Tenacious Determination – God told Joshua to be strong and of good courage for two reasons. Both of these reasons included doing God’s Will. God wanted Joshua to have a Tenacious Determination to do God’s Will.
Let’s stop on the top rung for just a quick moment. Tenacious Determination is another way of saying be strong and of good courage. Hold yourself together. God told Joshua to hold himself together for two reasons. The first reason was because Joshua was to divide the land to the people.
If Joshua were to become pulled apart, slack, suspicious of God’s motive, or daunted by the task ahead, Joshua would have been unsuccessful in doing God’s will of possessing the land God had promised to them. The same is true of us, Christian. If we get pulled apart, slack, suspicious of God’s motives, or daunted by the circumstances of our life, we will in no way see success.
The second reason God told Joshua he need to have tenacious determination was because God was expecting him to do everything that was in God’s Word. Joshua had many distractions to keep him away from the Word of God. Who would have been busier than the leader of a million plus people. He had a huge responsibility as a leader.
The more leadership we have, the more we need to have tenacious determination to do the will of God as recorded in His Word.
God guaranteed success to Joshua in verse 9. If we back up to verse 8 we will see how God told him to accomplish this good success. God told Joshua, and us, to constantly feed on the Word of God and ponder the word of God day and night.
It is only when we are saturated with the Word of God, thinking about it constantly, and tenaciously determined to do it that we will have 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.
Joshua 1:8
How would you answer the question, “What Does Success Look like For You?” I hope your answer includes the following:
- Getting your plan from God.
- Realizing your victory is already determined.
- Knowing God is with you.
- Tenaciously Determined to do God’s will by constantly feeding on the Word of God and pondering (considering, thinking about, studying) the Word of God day and night.
“…Then you will have good success.” Joshua 1:8
Written By: Anne Gurley