GLENN KAISER is a senior pastor at Chicago's Jesus People USA and founder member of heavy rock band Rez. He kicks off his new, regular series in Cross Rhythms with an examination of Success.



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In the end, someone else has the scales and has already determined your personal worth (he died and rose to demonstrate that!) to him. Think on that for a moment.

At the "end of the age", God will determine BY HIS OWN STANDARDS the value and eternal worth of our work, our choices, our "successes". Sobering truth. I love it. Because direction and solid, ethical value judgements are needed in terms of our individual definitions of success. Neither the general population nor your best friend in the world can offer but a poor reflection of the wisdom, love and guidance of God. And to him we must go - here and now - to ultimately settle the deepest questions of our lives.

Does God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit consider us "successful"? Does the Lord consider our daily work successful by his standards of judgement (check the Book of Books)? That is my measure of success in my own life. I know of no other so gracious, merciful, brutally truthful, absolute nor unchangeable.

In America as in Britain there are countless thousands of people who seem to be clueless as to what they are after or how they might be affected by "it" if they ever achieve whatever "it" is. Their values are of a kingdom to be sure, but it is a kingdom without the true king. The best of us are terrible substitutes for God.

It is God, the person himself who we must learn to listen to, commune with, identify with FIRST. Until we are in the habit of doing so, our values and subsequent sense of success will continue to drive us, whip us and in many cases finally destroy us. Consider some of the spiritual, mental and physical fatalities of the past 20 years... many were counted "successes" by someone's standards!

For what it's worth - my own sense of "success"? To be faithful to my Lord Jesus Christ in things large and small, one day at a time. To be obedient to God and his Word and to live out his confirmed will for my life. Period. Always, he has the last word:

"Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole [duty] of man. For God will bring every deed into judgement, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." (Ecclesiastes 12: 13,14) CR

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.