Walking on a wire!
“If you gain…riches, don’t…trust in them” (Psalm 62:10).
Can you be trusted with success?
Nothing reveals your character like how you handle success.
Adversity challenges your faith, your resilience and your coping skills.
Solomon said, “If you fall to pieces in a crisis, there wasn’t much to you” (Prov 24:10).
But-
– handling success is even harder.
Thomas Carlyle said:
“For one man who can stand prosperity, there are a hundred who’ll stand adversity.”
That’s because hardship limits your options.
It forces you to focus on surviving.
But prosperity can complicate your life by increasing your perceived “needs,” and testing your integrity.
Why else would David say, “If you gain…riches, don’t…trust in them?”
Now let’s be clear.
Prosperity isn’t wrong.
The Bible says God promotes and downgrades as He sees fit.
He “puts down one and exalts another” (Psalm 75:7).
And He doesn’t need our permission to do it.
But He does need to know that you can handle increased success without losing your values and priorities.
Chuck Swindoll says:
“Being successful doesn’t give anybody the right to call wrong right.
Or say something’s okay if it isn’t…
Walking on a wire is harder than standing up in a storm.”
But it can be done!
Joseph went on from prison to become prime minister (Gen 41:42-43).
Daniel was promoted to commander-in-chief over one-third of the country (Dan 6:1-2).
Amos went from picking figs to being a prophet in the royal household (Amos 7:14-15).
God gave a humble farmer named Job untold wealth.
He took David “from the sheepfolds…To shepherd…Israel… according to the integrity of his heart” (Psalm 78:70-72).
And not one of them compromised their character!
So it can be done!
The question is:
Can you do it?