What do you think God is more interested in–if we are developing maturity or if we are successful? That is an interesting question, isn’t it? We all want to be successful. I know I do. I strive to do my job well and have success in it. I strive to do ministry well and to experience success in seeing others grow as a result of the ministry God has entrusted to me. Is that a wrong feeling? I don’t think it is wrong at all. We should want to be successful in what God is calling us to do, but we just have to remember that God’s ways are not our ways! He sees things in ways that are difficult for us to see this side of Heaven.

I believe that God is more interested in growing us towards Christlikeness then He is us being successful. Why do I think this? Because as I look back over my life, the times that God has brought me closer in relationship to Him have not been the times of success, but my failures. When I look back, it was experiences like not getting the job I thought I wanted out of college that led me down a path that led me closer to Him. If I hadn’t wound up in Tremont, I would have missed out on being influenced by some Godly men that really helped develop me from a young man to a man of God.

Laura and I have talked about how the experience of not being able to have children of our own has richly blessed us as we have gone down the path towards adopting a child. We think often of how God will be able to work through us in this process.

No, our successes will give others some nice things to say for our obituary, but God is more interested in how we are developing towards maturity in our relationship with Him. Your challenge this week is to think about the times in your life when a “failure” has led to a closer relationship with the Living God. These times are often difficult to see in the moment, but can be easier seen with the passing of time.

Here’s to your moving to a more mature relationship with Christ!

More to come…
Jeremy