A successful person is different things to different people. And success is usually much different in the eyes of God than it is in the eyes of man.
A successful person is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at them. -Sidney Greenberg-
This quote made a huge impression on me. A truly successful person must be able to concentrate on what they are called to do without getting distracted by others.
For most of my life I have been a HUGE people-pleaser. After awhile, that puts a huge amount of stress on you. You finally learn that there is no way to please everybody and stay true to your own values and beliefs.
I was torn between doing what I knew was right, then dealing with the immense guilt of saying NO. My stomach used to be in knots, and the guilt would last for hours or even days.
I felt this guilt even though I knew I was making the right decision. It took me a good while to be able to say NO and not feel guilty about it.
Now if a person asks me to do a particular thing, I tell them I will pray about it and get back to them. Then I DO ask God to show me the answer. I never make a decision based on how I personally feel at the time.
If the answer turns out to be NO, I tell them that I have prayed and don’t feel that God wants me to that particular thing. If the answer is YES, then I pursue it with passion. I know God will give me whatever it takes to be successful and I won’t get burned out after a short time.
Burnout comes from taking on too many things that you shouldn’t be doing in the first place. Then you struggle trying to get everything done that you were never supposed to do.
Frustration sets in when you think of the hours you have spent on the project. You could have been doing something more productive and fulfilling.
This might not describe your life, but it certainly described mine. I said yes out of guilt, then resented it the whole time. The misery finally overcame the guilt, and I started to change.
This brings me to the last part of the quote.
I think about the many kinds of bricks that people will try to throw at you. They don’t always agree with what you feel called to do. Many times they don’t want to see past their own need.
It is at this point that you have to decide whether you will stay true to your own convictions or be tossed around by the opinions of others.
A person can never be truly successful who changes his mind every time someone has a different opinion or because he wants to please them.
God wants to use every Christian in some way. Each one is responsible to find what that plan is and carry it forth, knowing that God will give them the strength to do it. When you do find out His plan, don’t let the opinions of others keep you from carrying that plan forth.
Many times God does send other people to give you a word of encouragement, call you to accountability, or be an answer to prayer. He can always use these things to work in your life when needed. I am talking about when you know that you have heard from God, and others don’t understand. Because of that, they try to drag you down.
First, make totally sure that you have heard from God
Then, believe what He told you with all your heart and carry it out
Lastly, don’t let others keep you from doing what God told you to do
