Ambition

Ambition

MY QUESTION for GOD

Can ambition be good?

A MOMENT with GOD

Joyful are people of integrity, who follow the instructions of the Lord. Joyful are those who . . . search for him with all their hearts.

Psalm 119:1-2

Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before.

1 Thessalonians 4:11

My ambition has always been to preach the Good News where the name of Christ has never been heard.

Romans 15:20

Ambition can be compared to fire—both have the potential to be powerfully productive or terribly destructive. When fire is kept in a fireplace, it produces heat and light. But when it is used improperly, fire threatens to consume everything in its path. So it is with ambition. The Bible encourages us to learn to distinguish between godly ambition, which can produce great benefits, and selfish ambition, which can blaze out of control. Godly ambition yields a burning desire to know God and do what he asks. Selfish ambition produces the desire to bring credit and glory to yourself rather than to God. You can test your ambition by asking yourself this question: Is it leading you closer to God or farther away from him? If you’re not sure, then most likely it is leading you away from him.

DIVINE CHALLENGE

Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me.” Matthew 16:24