Good morning. Ambition, without it we would be lazy do-nothings that rarely accomplish anything worthwhile. Ambition, too much of it and it will be the cause of our ruin, destroying our relationships with God and man.
It is said that ambition is the grit in the soul that creates disenchantment with the ordinary and puts the dare into dreams.
It is also said, and this idea is backed up in several passages of scripture, that ambition left unchecked becomes an insatiable addiction to power and prestige. Ambition out of control creates a roaring hunger for personal achievement that devours people like a lion devouring its prey, leaving only the skeletal remains of what was once a meaningful relationship.
Jesus reminds us in Matthew 23:12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
If our ambition is for power and wealth, we are warned in 1 Timothy 6:9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
One of my favorite passages of scripture relates to this subject. We read in Philippians 2:1-5 Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion,then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
If this is our ambition, to have the same mindset as Christ Jesus in our relationships with one another and in our outlook and behaviors, then ambition has served a wonderful purpose!
Be ambitious today to be all that you can be in Christ, growing always closer to Him!
Vern