The Key to Success

Zeal for the Lord should never be lost. It is the key to success in life. Often believers wish to have their desires met and unless they are according the Lord’s will, they will not be met. Zeal for the Lord helps us realize the desires we can have. The Lord causes desires in us for our sake so that we have a happy and successful life. The zeal we have toward Him appeals to Him so much that He opens up ways by which we should desire. He makes those ways harmless and without convolution. He foresees the needs we have and helps us desire accordingly. At times wishing to bless us beyond our comprehension He leads us to desire.

The desires that come upon us through zeal for the Lord will not fall apart. In other words, they will be fulfilled. No circumstances or power can obstruct their fulfillment. For the Lord God in His power has given them to us that His name is glorified wonderfully. By fulfilling them He makes known to the world that He does whatever He wishes among people. He further demonstrates that all plans for His people originate from Him and that it is He who makes ways for them. Men who acknowledged them will be in awe of Him and those that did not will be put to shame. Zeal for the Lord can be likened to the following. “The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it. It shall not go out, but the priest shall burn wood on it every morning; and he shall lay out the burnt offering on it, and offer up in smoke the fat portions of the peace offerings on it” (Lev. 6:12).

Once zeal for the Lord is continuing in us, we satisfy Him with His commands and will. As believers called with a purpose, we do everything He seeks without hesitation. We expend ourselves to become a lamp in the dark. Our bodies become vessels in which zeal brews. As we burn like a lamp, He replenishes us with apt desires. One of things we can do to continue receiving such desires is renew our zeal toward Him every morning. The moment we assure Him to do everything according to His will, we renew it. This is committing ourselves to Him; it is not going ahead of ourselves, but surrendering ourselves to Him that we follow Him alone.

The zeal that is not for the Lord produces desires that are not of the Lord. Such desires lead a person to do sinful acts. Those acts become means to a severe end. “Of Jezebel also has the LORD spoken, saying, ‘The dogs will eat Jezebel in the district of Jezreel’” (1 Kings 21:23). The wickedness of Jezebel has brought forth from her desires that are of sin. Therefore, no man can have apt desires as long as his wickedness is still within him. Everything he desires will be of the flesh and all fleshly desires will eventually cause ruin. It is a factual statement that children of God cannot possess the heart of Jezebel. All desires flow from the heart and the hearts of God’s children are confined to God.

Nevertheless, if your heart is not completely confined to God, following these principles will help you do so.

  1. Do not seek foreign things. “Drink water from your own cistern and fresh water from your own well” (Prov. 5:15). Begin dwelling on that which God has given you. Whatever He has given you, it is for your best so that you will grow in respect to Him. Ignoring this fact will tempt you to go beyond that which He gave you and will lead you to sin. God appoints to each one his own cistern and well so that in the times to come He may widen and deepen them through our zeal.
  2. Trust in God. “Then the king was very pleased and gave orders for Daniel to be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den and no injury whatever was found on him, because he had trusted in his God” (Dan. 6:23). Do not fear your surroundings, whether it is people or circumstances. Practice trusting in God and you will begin to see His favor upon you. In every matter you face, you will notice that you are able to overcome. One significant time that helps you confine your heart to God is your trust in Him in adverse times. When everything is working against you, He wants to see the strength of your trust in Him. As you demonstrate it, He will do untold things for your sake.
  3. Acknowledging the Lord’s power. “David himself said in the Holy Spirit, ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES BENEATH YOUR FEET’” (Mark 12:36). How often you embrace this determines how well you can confine your heart to God. The fact is your enemies are the Lord’s enemies when you’ve become His disciple. The things or persons that threaten you or oppose your desires will have to face defeat no matter what. As you experience His power in the victories you achieve, you further gain faith to access His power for greater things.
  4. Observe the godly. “Then Paul answered, ‘What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus’” (Acts 21:13). When you see the extent to which Paul was willing to go for the Lord and are willing to understand its depth, you yourself will feel compelled to live like him. In this process, you inevitably confine your heart to God. Being a Christian, following the Lord or living godly should never be mechanical acts. Rather, they must be sacrificial. The more you observe the godly, the more your heart is tuned to live for Christ. Then, God will call you to make sacrifices wherein you attain the ability to confine you heart to Him.
  5. Practice righteousness. The Spirit in Paul compelled believers saying, “Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another” (Eph. 4:25). If you can do this with the fellow members of the church, you can do it with everyone and everywhere. By practicing this principle you invite God to confidently dwell in your heart.
Posted in 2014, Archives, RECENT ARTICLES.