Questions, Topics, and Answers With Miangeni Academy (Part 4)

“Does the Bible promise a promising career and success to a child who makes a good choice of Jesus in their lives?”

Everyone can be successful in life, but first, you must have a plan to succeed.  And to succeed in God’s eyes, underneath your plan, you must also have an established Chrisitan foundation of Salvation.  There is no doubt that the God-planned life is by all odds the best, most useful, and happiest life.  So, it isn’t wise to leave God out of the planning for your future because while you plan God can help you understand what’s best for your life.

Psalms 18:30

“30 As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the Lord is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him.”

Notice the Psalmist is declaring God’s way is perfect!  The wisest young person is the one who seeks out what God has for their life and, with joy, carries God’s plan out with purpose.  So the question is, “does the Bible promise a good career and success to a child who chooses Jesus in their lives?”  My answer might not be what you really want to hear.  However, I can encourage you that if we follow God’s plan, He does bless our lives.  Understand, the blessing may not be that we become rich or own a lot of property.  But God does give us many promises that say He will care for us, meet our needs, and make sure that we don’t go hungry.

Philippians 4:19

“And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Psalms 37:25

“I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.”

God promises to take care of us physically and spiritually.  But His word does not promise to make us millionaires if we serve Him.  So what does the Bible do for us?  It gives us the foundation we need to be successful in life and Christ.  For example, let’s suppose we apply the principles the Bible teaches us.  In that case, it will help us succeed in our relationships with people, our occupations, our education, and our spiritual walk with Jesus.  There are many biblical characteristics that can help us achieve the success we want in our lives.  The first one we can look at is honesty. Thank God, we can choose to be honest every day.

Romans 12:17

“17 Recompense to no man evil for evil.  Provide things honest in the sight of all men.

If we are honest, God will bless all that we do.  Dishonest people may seem to prosper for a little while, but eventually, practicing dishonesty will destroy relationships and our life pursuits.  Dishonesty also separates us from God, so we must be honest if we want success in Christ.  We can also choose to be humble.  Many times pride causes someone to be dishonest.  Let’s look at what the Proverb writer has to say about pride.

Proverbs 16:18

^“18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.”

Another characteristic that can help us achieve success is working hard and giving our best effort at everything we do.  I like to title this following scripture “don’t be lazy.”

Romans 12:11

“11 Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;”

Romans 12:11, tells us directly not to be lazy, but to be industrious, work, and look for things to do.  So we are learning that God wants us to be honest in all our transactions with others.  He wants us to be industrious or diligent in caring for our responsibilities.  And God doesn’t want us to practice laziness.  In the following passage of Proverbs, we can read about a lazy man’s field and what people saw as they walked by.

Proverbs 24: 30-34

“30 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;

31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.

32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.

33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:

34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.”

 

Ecclesiaties 10:18

^“18 By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through.”

Laziness or neglectfulness does not go unnoticed!  The man’s field is overgrown and obviously not cared for.  Then the Proverb writer lets us know that just a little bit of laziness is enough to wreak poverty in our lives.  All it takes is just a little bit of laziness.  And we lose out on our education, we lose out on being successful in our occupations, we can fail in our relationships with others, and laziness can lead to failure in our relationship with God.  The Ecclesiastes writer said if you are lazy and don’t take care of your home, it will fall apart!  So, we can expect some things if we let laziness take over our lives.  Let’s look at what the Bible says about the person who works and the person who sleeps all summer.

Proverbs 10:5

“5 He who gathers in summer is a wise son;
He who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame.”

The worker (the one who gathers) is wise.  But the sleeper causes shame for himself.

Now let’s look at the life of Ruth.  Ruth, the Moabite woman, committed her life to her mother-in-law Naomi who followed the true God.  Both had lost their husbands to death.  These tragic events sent the two women on a journey back to Bethlehem.  When Ruth arrived in Bethlehem with Naomi, she worked hard in the fields to provide for them both.  Ruth’s reputation as a virtuous woman and a provider for her mother-in-law won her the affection of a man named Boaz.  Boaz respected and loved Ruth and took her as his only wife.  At the end of Ruth’s story, we can easily conclude how God cared for and blessed Ruth immensely for her efforts and commitment to Naomi.  Ruth’s life is a powerful story of a young woman who committed her life to God and His ways.  She was known as a woman who was busy with the right things, working hard and providing for her mother inlaws needs.  Ruth was a woman with integrity, and God used her in a mighty way.  Did you know even our Lord Jesus comes from her lineage?  Yes, Jesus is a descendent of Ruth the Moabite who became a child of the living God.

Ruth 27:17

“16 Also let grain from the bundles fall purposely for her; leave it that she may glean, and do not rebuke her.”

17 So she gleaned in the field until evening, and beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley.

18 Then she took it up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned.  So she brought out and gave to her what she had kept back after she had been satisfied.”

Ruth had a reputation of rising up early and gleaning in the fields until evening.  Proverb 6:6  teaches us to look at the example of an ant.  If you watch ants, you will find that they are always busy gathering food.

Proverb 6:6

“6 Go to the ant, you sluggard!
Consider her ways and be wise,”

God gave Adam and Eve work responsibilities from the beginning.  Being industrious, honest, and working hard helps us feel good about ourselves and what we accomplish.  The most miserable people in this world do not work and live without goals or ambitions.

Genesis 2:15

^“15 And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.”

The Bible gives us instructions on succeeding in our physical life and our spiritual lives.  But it is up to us to choose to follow the instruction we receive.  If we avoid laziness and practice being industrious, this trait will benefit us and others.  If we are busy with our homework, we will reap the benefits of a successful education.  If we are honest with others, people will respect and trust us.  Applying these simple principles can help us succeed in Christ.

RHT