progress

i had the pleasure of sitting down and having a great conversation over coffee with two good friends of mine just the other day. we jumped from topic to topic discussing how each of us felt about any given issue, but one of the topics rang in my head for the rest of the day.

we were discussing what "success" meant or should mean for a church leader. one of my friends raised a very interesting point when he said, "i think success shouldn't be about numbers, but about growth." in my head, that seemed to sum it all up, but, at the same time, it seemed to be lacking something. after taking time to think about it, i think there might be a little more to that idea than meets the eye.

as followers of christ, what is success for us? is it numbers? is it growth? is it even possible to reach a point of success? success implies the end...the goal of any given task or journey, but what should success look like for us in this upside down kingdom of god? is there a point at which we achieve that which we are seeking? and if so, what happens when we get there?

maybe success looks nothing like we think it should (as thing usually do in this way of life). according to leo tolstoy, progress is success for christians. progress implies the ongoing effort for that which we seek. progress is constant and doesn't stop. it keeps going. tolstoy argues that the crux of the christian faith rests on continual, not on achieving and goal. tolstoy states,

• "[success] consists only in walking in the choosen way, in getting nearer to inward perfection in the imitation of christ, and outward perfection in the establishment of the kingdom of god. the greater of less blessedness of a man depends, according to this doctrine, not on the degree of perfection to which he has attained, but on the greater or less swiftness with which he is pursuing it.

doesn't it make so much sense? we are not called to be like the pharisees and become stagnant in the perfection we have achieved so far, but, instead, we are called to be like zacceus and the woman at the well and the robber on the cross, who were in constant progress toward perfection. we must continually remind ourselves that "it was the lost sheep that was dearer than than the ninety-nine that were not lost," and it was the "stationary righteousness" of the pharisees that christ despised.

i think that tolstoy was spot on when thinking this way. i also think my friend was just as right. we are not called to get to some place and stop, but to go...continually. too often we think we have made it to the end and reached the goal, but, really, it is only the beginning. there is always room for us to grow and more to learn, but too often we think we have made it to the end.

let us not become stuck in the "stationary righteousness" of the pharisees...

let us keep going...

let us keep pressing on...

let us keep making...progress...