Fulfilling the work God has given you:
Consider Jesus' prayer to the Father in John 17, "I glorified you on the earth, having accomplished the work you gave me to do." Consider how work was a gift given to us before the terrible Fall in the garden (God gave Adam and Eve the role of keeping the garden, and naming the animals, etc) part of "success" is finishing the work God has designed us to fulfill. This is why in 2 Thes. 3 God warns idle believers to get going, in view of the Day of the Lord (his coming return). In the book of Titus, the Holy Spirit instructs the young pastor by saying, "The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless." Paul's heart as a pastor was not to create a fear of losing the love of Jesus in his people, but for the love of Jesus to be fully formed in them.
A Promise For Success:
Psalm 1, Joshua 1:7 Meditation and prayer is one way we align ourselves with the work God has given us to do. The work is not to earn anything, Jesus has finished the ultimate work on the cross. God in his grace now allows us to join with him partaking of his mission in the world. Cutting through the noise of life is necessary in tuning our spiritual ears to what God is doing in our lives.
A Few Overarching Roadblocks to Success:
Jesus worked extremely hard to create a culture that would mirror and begin the kingdom of God on earth. The kingdom of God is like a garden in our lives that needs constant tilling, seeding, watering, and fertilizing.
Roadblock #1 Easy street
Believing the Christian life is easy, and that when Jesus said "Abide in me" he really meant "do nothing". Growth in any area of life requires our effort. We find both active and passive commands throughout scripture describing our spiritual growth. "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling (active), for it is God that works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (passive). It would be silly for my wife to say, "I am all yours" and I say in return, " Great! I'll just do nothing".
Roadblock #2 Unrepentant Lives
Romans 12:9 says to, "Abhor what is evil, and cleave to what is good." "Abhor" is the strongest word for hate in the Bible, and "cleave" means "be glued to". In Joshua 7, Joshua is bummed out because the children of Israel were defeated at Ai by a sandlot group of warriors. For days Joshua is depressed and keeps coming to God questioning his character. Finally God tells Joshua, "Get up!" there's sin in the camp and you need to deal with it."
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