Life often asks us the question: What does success really look like? The world has one answer—status, speed, achievement, recognition. But God’s Kingdom gives us a far richer, more layered picture of success.
Recently, as I prayed before a Sunday service, God gave me a vision. First, I saw a summer bicycle—pastel-colored, a wicker basket brimming with flowers, sunlight warming the path. It carried a sense of joy, peace, and the beauty of simply enjoying the ride. Then, the image shifted. Suddenly, I saw an Olympic racing bike—streamlined, disciplined, its rider focused on the finish line. The contrast was striking: one spoke of delight and abundance, the other of determination and endurance.
During the sermon that followed, the pastor spoke about Steven Bradbury, the Australian speed skater who famously won Olympic gold not by being the fastest, but by staying in the race when everyone else fell. It was as though the vision and the sermon spoke the same message in unison: success in God’s Kingdom is not about striving, but about faithfulness, positioning, and endurance.
The Flower-Basket Bike
The first bike reminds us of Jesus’ words: “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these” (Matthew 6:28–29). Success sometimes looks like resting in God’s provision, savoring His blessings, and noticing the beauty He places along the path.
The Racing Bike
The second bike echoes Paul’s exhortation: “Run in such a way as to get the prize… They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever” (1 Corinthians 9:24–25). Success also requires endurance, focus, and the discipline to keep pressing forward in our calling.
Holding Both Together
God doesn’t call us to choose one or the other. Instead, He invites us to embrace both rhythms: the joy of the flowers and the discipline of the race. Success in the Kingdom is not a single definition—it is a faithful journey where both beauty and perseverance matter.
Just as the vision showed, and just as Bradbury’s story reminds us, sometimes success is as simple as staying upright, keeping faith, and trusting God with the outcome. And in the end, the crown we receive is not perishable—it is eternal.
Ride with joy. Ride with endurance. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who is both the beauty in your basket and the crown at your finish line.