The Principle of Success: Understanding that Biblical “success” is defined by God’s ultimate plan, not my temporal attainments, and learning that reaching it requires God’s Word conquering me from the inside out

Whenever God speaks of success in the Scripture, He relates it to the continuous activity of Scripture meditation. This continuous mental discipline of memorizing and meditating on Scripture is able to rebuild thought structures, refocus emotions, and redirect desires and goals.

God uses the words good success to describe the rewards that He will give to those who walk in obedience to His ways and meditate on His Word day and night. The Lord instructed Joshua, who led the children of Israel into the Promised Land, with these words: “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success” (Joshua 1:8).

As you meditate on Scripture, the Lord may show you a promise you can claim, an attitude you need to change, or an example you should follow. Remember that the goal of meditation on God’s Word is to fill your heart, mind, and soul with the mind of Christ, so you may walk in a manner pleasing to God.

Throughout the pages of Scripture, principles are contained that provide guidance for our personal lives and relationships. These principles touch on every relational sphere of life, whether it be marriage, family, business, church, or government. All relationships encounter conflict at some point, and if this conflict is not resolved, psychological, spiritual, and even physical damage can result. But when we discover that our conflicts are connected to violations of God’s principles, and we learn to adhere to these principles through the power of the Holy Spirit, a resolution can be experienced that produces peace in our daily interactions. When we learn to see and respond to life’s challenges from God’s viewpoint, and choose His grace over our natural inclination, everything changes!