One of the most perplexing, unexplainable things in life is how and why successful people seem so grateful – and why grateful people seem to find success more often.
I realize gratitude is a form of humility. Humility is knowing where you stand in life and where you are in the grand scheme of things. Being grateful is about recognizing that fact about yourself and saying ‘thank you’ to God who put you there.
Humility is tied to your identity. When you know where you stand in life, you have to know who you really are. Not knowing your identity will either lead to an inflation of pride and self esteem which is unattractive or it will lead to insecurity and low self esteem which is unhealthy.
People are drawn to people who are humble and grateful. They are drawn to people who are sure of themselves in an accurate way.
And since grateful and humble people are also secure, helpful and productive because they know what they need to do in life, they connect other people who can help each other out – together.
Because of this, their network grows.
As such, success easily follows suit.
Gratitude is also strongly tied to loyalty. People who are grateful tend to stay loyal and committed to their calling and their work and the people they work with. This long-term commitment leads to better work output, better relationships and as such, a better outlook in life – resulting to undeniable success not just in finances but in the soul.
Clarity of Paths
When you know who you really are, it also leads to clarify of your life – what paths you must take to progress yourself much like how you have to do main quests in a game to progress the story and get the best rewards and experiences.
Clarity of identity leads to clarity of life and clarity of what you need to do to get the best life possible. It doesn’t mean that you will make the most amount of money but you will, in fact, get the most amount of fulfillment.
Here’s the problem:
Humanity’s dictation of how we should be like and what is right and wrong as an effort to define identity distorts humility. We are seeing this unfold right before us as the world redefines what gender is, what sex is, what heaven and hell is like, even going so far as to define who God is – all in humanity’s own terms!
How can the created dictate the purpose of what it’s created for?
Where else would you be able to see an appliance try to change the manufacturer’s manual and declare that its use and purpose is now different than what the manufacturer intended it to be?
The more that the created tries to veer away from what its intended purpose is according to the manufacturer’s manual, the more it will damage itself to an irreparable state.
The more the created is used as stipulated in the manufacturer’s manual, the more successful it is and the more good it produces in the world.
In humanity’s attempt to reshape who we are – our identity – the more we have lost who we truly are. The more deranged the parameters have become and the more outrageous the proposals.
Social media has become a circus of identity crisis that tries to eternally fix itself with anything but the original manufacturer’s manual – the Bible.
Empty Success vs Fulfilling Success
This is why we see less humility today. This is why we see a lot less gratitude expressed today. And as such, why we see a lot less loyal and faithful people today.
Because humility, gratitude and loyalty are tied up with each other and they are both tied up to a strong sense of identity.
True success comes with fulfillment and joy. You will never see someone devoid of humility, gratitude and a strong sense of identity in Jesus who is truly successful. There will always be a missing piece in their success – and until they find it, what they have is only temporal, fleeting success.
Not a lasting, fulfilling one.
You can be successful and miserable or you can be successful and fulfilled. The path to which one you take depends on your understanding of who you truly are.
Learn your true identity and how to operate your life through the manufacturer’s manual – the Bible.
