I was reading an article in Men’s Health (not a huge fan of the magazine, it just came free with my Runner’s World subscription 
), and the author was writing about his battle with gratitude. Sounds interesting in itself. He stated that he was a very driven person, and driven people are programmed to not likely be grateful because they are always pushing for something greater. “Gratefulness implies complacency, and complacency is the sworn enemy of ambition.” Oh my. Fortunately, the article didn’t end with that definitive thought, yet it caused me to pause and think for a moment. Have I been guilty of that? Has my drive and pursuit to be the best I can be caused me to be ungrateful in any way? Do I push myself so hard that I completely miss what God is trying to give me? In a word, probably.
Our western society is formed on ambition. We strive every day to not only provide for oursleves and our families, but to learn and grow and become better at whatever we do. This is wonderful in itself, and it has allowed us to have the opportunities we have as a nation. However, it is a potential trap that can lead to destruction if not kept in check. By humility. If we aren’t careful, our ambition takes control of us, and we lose sight of the fact that we are ultimately not in control. That is, until something happens that changes your mind.
I’ve often fallen prisoner to ambition in my life. I’ve always felt an overarching feeling of self-reliance when it comes to getting something accomplished. I never liked group work in school. I didn’t play well with others. I liked to complete tasks alone and would relentlessly push myself to make them perfect. Looking back, I think there was some good in all of that because it helped me to develop a work ethic that would help me achieve things in life. However, it also often caused times of stress and needless tension when things didn’t go just right, or at least the way I had planned. I know there were also many times of too much self-reliance, causing me to forget about the One who created me to be begin with. The One who allowed me to even have the opportunity to do what I was doing. I can see that I did not have the grateful heart that I shoud have had. I was so clouded by ambition and focus, that I forgot to look for the direction being offered to me.
Is that you? Are you a prisoner to ambition? Do you focus so hard on your goals that you forget to let God lead, even in the small details of everyday life? Do you find yourslef pushing and shoving to get your way to the top? How does it feel when you get there?
Let’s all take a breather. Let’s take a moment to look back just a bit and see what has gone well in our lives, and what hasn’t. Let’s re-evaluate our goal setting to where we don’t become so focused that we forget how to be thankful for what we have. Today is a gift, and it would be a shame to waste it because we’re so focused on tomorrow. Let’s not let ourselves be so driven, that we neglect the One that wants to help us steer the car. Let’s take a moment to be grateful…before we burn out.
