Phillip A Bishop
Kinesiology, University of Alabama
Something theologian Henry Blackaby said has tempted me to leave the academy over the years.
Blackaby suggested that we should “see where God is working” and then join in with Him. When I heard that, I wondered if I was in the right vocation. The campus can be a pretty discouraging place to minister. We don’t very often see a lot of visible impact.
I have discovered that I am not a good judge of success.
The Wrong Metrics
Part of my problem as an evaluator is that I use the wrong metrics, judging by appearances. And in that, my vision is limited. As the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (I Sam 16:7).
How should we judge ourselves? Paul said that it was nearly impossible to judge accurately. So, he left it to God to be the judge of success: “I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me” (I Cor. 4:3).
Let’s redefine success. If we are prepared to be used by God, if we are listening to Him, and if we are obedient to say what He tells us and do what He shows us, then we ARE successful no matter what we may judge with our eyes. Those folks in Hebrews 11 who were sawn in two may not have seen themselves as great successes, but the Scriptures say they were.
Leaving The Results To God
Back in the 1970’s Campus Crusade launched an evangelistic campaign called “Here’s Life America.” I participated, and in the process learned an important definition of evangelism: Success in witnessing is sharing Christ in the power of the Holy Sprit, and leaving the results to God. That is a very useful and freeing definition for most spiritual endeavors.
It is in our power to be obedient, to minister, and most of all, to love. But, we ought never to forget, the results are in God’s hands, not ours.
To the extent that we obey, we are successful.
To the extent that something is visibly successful, the glory rightfully belongs to God.
Godspeed.
© 2006 Phillip A. Bishop