Wednesday, March 6, 2002
In early 2002, Ford Motor Company made a dramatic announcement. Because of serious financial setbacks, they were launching a restructuring plan that would cut out 35,000 jobs - about one-tenth of their entire work force! They announced the closing of several of their major plants and the discontinuing of four of their automobiles - including that symbol of luxury, the Lincoln Continental. The new Chairman of Ford made the announcement - William, the great-grandson of the legendary Henry Ford. In his words, these steps were "painful but necessary." Then, with bold candor, he summarized how this had happened. He said, "We strayed from what got us to the top of the mountain, and it cost us greatly."
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "The Amnesia of Success."
I heard those words, and I thought, "How many times have we all made that mistake - in our relationship with God?" As you read through the Bible, it's clear that God's children have struggled with this for a long time.
Take our word for today from the Word of God, for example in Hosea 13, beginning with verse 4. Be careful - it could turn out to be a mirror that shows you what's really going on in your life right now. The Bible says, "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt. You shall acknowledge no God but Me, no Savior except Me. I cared for you in the desert, in this land of burning heat." Now here comes the wakeup call. "When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot Me."
That is the amnesia of success. God delivers us, cares for us, and brings us into a season of success, of victory, of results, of progress. But instead of that making us more humble and more grateful, and more dependent on God than we've ever been, we start to take the wheel ourselves. "Thanks for the help, God - I think I can drive from here." And that's where we subtly start to change who's running things from the Lord to ourselves. Oh, your theology is the same, but your life is more about me-ology than theology. You still go to the meetings, you give in the offerings, you serve on the committees, you live a decent life. It's just that you're no longer really relying on God like you did when God was all you had. In reality, you're relying on yourself - your effort, your plans, your skills, your judgment. And the humility of God-reliance is turning into the pride of self-reliance.
But it was God who got you to the top of this mountain! If you forget what - if you forget Who - got you to the top of the mountain, it will cost you greatly. God said to His ancient people, "Because you did not serve the Lord your God joyfully and gladly in the time of prosperity, therefore in hunger and thirst, in nakedness and dire poverty, you will serve the enemies the Lord sends against you" (Deuteronomy 28:47-48).
You sought the Lord. You trusted the Lord. You surrendered to the Lord when there was no way you could miss how much you needed Him. But now, because of His goodness, it's easy to forget how much you still need Him ... to give Him all the glory ... to leave the steering wheel in His hands. Please, don't forget how you got the success, the results, the recognition, the opportunities you have now. These aren't your achievements - they're God's gifts!
You gave Him everything when you had nothing. Now that you have more, keep giving Him everything. In reality, you need Him more now than you ever have!