Off Script 25: Worshiping Success

Everyone enjoys accomplishment and achievement, but what happens when we take success and make it our ultimate goal in life?  When you reach the pinnacle of success in any field, it’s easy to get depressed, asking yourself, “Is this all there is?”  Furthermore, you may begin to fear that you won’t be able to maintain your position as other star-eyed would-be achievers are climbing to the top in an effort to push you off.  How can we guard against worshiping the counterfeit god of success without settling into complacency or laziness?  In this episode we answer this question by embracing the goodness and joy of achievement while recognizing that our ultimate worth comes from God’s gracious offer of love, demonstrated on the cross of his dear Son.

Notes and Links:

• Episodes in this series on Counterfeit Gods:
  1. Worshiping Love
  2. Worshiping Money
  3. Worshiping Success
  4. Worshiping Power
  5. Worshiping God
• Watch David Foster Wallace’s entire commencement speech
• For an excellent overview of this topic, listen to Tim Keller’s talk on Podcast 41: Counterfeit Gods or watch it on YouTube
• To purchase the book this series is based on by Tim Keller, go here
• Intro music: “Protofunk” by Kevin MacLeod.  Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License.