Success. It means something different to everyone you ask. The context, time frame, and end result all depend on the person and the situation. So, what does success look like for me? At the end of my two years serving in North Africa, what will be my definition of success? What would have to happen for me to look back and think “yes, I was successful” in this season?
I have been going through different cultural studies with my teammates and the one we are doing right now talks about sojourners. This study has shown me how much grace is truly offered through Jesus. While my human mind tends to want results I can count, touch, or point to as evidence, the Lord is much more gentle. He is reminding me that success in this season is simply a life in full pursuit of Him. It means showing up as my full self each day while I teach math. It means investing in, loving on, and praying for my intelligent, rowdy, and valuable students. It means giving it my all as a swim coach. When students show up eager to swim, it allows me to be just as excited and proud of their progress. During language lessons, when I am brain dead and tired, success means being honest about where I am and celebrating the little victories. It means I get to cherish the friendships I have here, with both local and foreign friends.
Success does not have a number attached to it. It does not require me to imitate someone else. No other expat here in this country is me. None of them have the same passions, gifts, interests, or reason for being here. Some of them might be really similar, but we are not the same. That means my success does not depend on how well I follow in their footsteps. The Lord is leading me on my own unique journey here. There are ups and downs, laughter and tears, but there is also success. There is success in the quiet morning devotions I have with the Lord. There is success in my students’ smiles and my increasing vocabulary. There is success in this season because I am learning how to love and lean on the Lord.
I don’t know what success means to you, but I challenge you to think about it. Are you striving for something besides the Lord? Are you comparing your journey with someone else’s? I promise you, the Lord is just as gentle with you as He is with me - He defines our success as a life lived with Him. Let’s practice that success together.