Check Ur Lens- Success.

Welcome back. As you are reading, quick q:  

Is your phone accessible? Do you have a beverage or snacky cake in the immediate area?

If so, you are prolly a pretty normal human, and I would invite you to check out the first two installments of this series on the blog. The last few weeks Holy Spirit has been zinging me a bit and I have been choosing to yield my sugar and phone consumption to magnify my desire for the Kingdom of Heaven.  

And it’s been glorious!  

Plus, I found this song called “Remember What it Cost” by Judah that’s got me lit up Christmas tree-style.  

Anyhoo, go back and check them if you have not had a chance to. Today we are going to briefly talk through our lens of success.  

Another way you could put this is: What makes you feel bad about yourself? Most of us don’t have to look that far. I can derail my life in a moment by thinking through what a “successful” 37-year-old college pastor is. He has 4 kids that are angels, has published 12 books, takes his wife out on three dates a week and is Instagram famous.  

Right?!?!?

Of course not, and yet our minds try and convince us constantly that we are not measuring up to this fake sense of success.  

I should be more financially secure.

I should have shared the Gospel with all my co-workers by now.

I shouldn’t spend so much time on Amazon or Facebook.  

Whatever it is, we foster this artificial sense of obligation that we allow to rule the way we live — constantly looking for this sense of validation that we are hitting the mark of success.  

Friends, while this is normal in our society, we do not have to look through this lens. Take a moment and ask Holy Spirit to define your success.

What did He say?

Crack open your Bible to John 15 and ask again.  

Holy Spirit is leading our Church to learn how to remain in Him. What could our lens of success look like John 15- style?  Being loved ridiculously and doing whatever He is doing.  

Join me this week in John 15, inviting Holy Spirit to teach us daily success, shutting down internal shame and obligation and enjoying connection to Jesus! 

-Austin Hoxie (@csucrossguy)