Bill Bradley once said, "Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in." Individuals who strive to be successful hold a lot of ambition, but can we become too ambitious to the point of selfishness?
Philippians 2:3 does warn us that we must "do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves." However, Paul warns us here not against the extremeness of ambition, but against the abundance of pride and selfishness.
Ambition, once directed by the right motives and sent toward the right things, will always lead us closer to God no matter how much or how little of it you have. Here are some very important pointers to remember that will help us direct our ambition in a way that will always honor God.
Strive to know God more
The greatest and chiefest end of all we do must always to be closer to God. Careers, relationships and other goals are meant to draw us to a God who desires great things for us.
Hosea 6:3 commands us, "Let us know; let us press on to know the Lord; his going out is sure as the dawn; he will come to us as the showers, as the spring rains that water the earth." As we continue to seek God first, He will add success in every other area of our life.
Relentlessly pursue God's will
Paul gives us a great example of holy ambition in Philippians 3:14, where He says, "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." God calls us to be missional and ambitious, always audacious in faith and deed, but He does call us to chase after His will.
God knows and determines the paths we are to take. Because He created us, He knows what gifts, calling and mission you are to take. As we pursue that first ambitiously, we can never go wrong.
Be passionate about loving and serving others
When ambition is driven by the need to serve the self, we miss the point. If it becomes too much about earning more money, building empires and getting fame for ourselves, we will never find satisfaction. However, when we strive missionally to serve others, we serve God as well.
Galatians 6:9-10 teaches us, "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith."
