Chasing the Bitch-goddess of Success
by Stephen W. Smith
Copyright 2013: Stephen W. Smith. This material may NOT be re-printed, used or copied in any form.
We are in trouble. We are living in a corrosive and corrupted culture that is shaping the souls of men and women more that the Divine Potter is forming our very own souls. We are chasing the wind and reaping the whirlwind.
We don’t believe the wise old Jewish preacher who once said:
“One handful of peaceful reposeIs better than two fistfuls of worried work—More spitting into the wind.”[1]
We scorn one handful of anything—but less peace, tranquility and a serene life. We strive for two handfuls of everything. More money. More pleasure. More income. More square footage. More. More. More! We find ourselves living in the illusion which says, “More can be yours if you work your butt off for it.” We live in a time and space which reduces the value of a human being to what you have; not who you are!
The voice of our culture says, “Hurry up and win! “ “You can have it all! But only to those who work the hardest!” “The one with the most toys win.” It’s very interesting to note that in the history of Christianity, men and women who achieved “saint” status were never measured by their accumulations. The amassing of fortunes has never inspired any saint I know of to do more. Their movtivation came from a deeper place—a place inside of them that was not broken; corrupted or wrecked. They were not looking for the outer markers of success as so many are today. Instead, their inner radar honed in on something true; something right and something eternal.
Today, we are shaped by the Fortune 500 list which you will never be on. We are shown fabulous automobiles that we cannot afford. We are mesmerized by beautiful people in ads and commercials which we will never become. We live in a perpetual place of suspension—always longing for but never, ever arriving.
Spiritual pursuits have been replaced by capitalists achievements. We strive. But come up empty. Leaders chase the wind and then spit into it when failure comes. We have swallowed the pill that influences our sense of security, conscious and character. We are confused and we are burned-out from chasing the bitch-goddess of success. That one, seemingly true god which is a hybrid, culturally defined bench marker of what makes a man or women.
The bitch-goddess of success inspires us to believe that self-esteem is found in having more and doing more. Money and success becomes the true currency to get you somewhere. Effort and achievement are heralded as the way to being successful. We read books to help us understand how we can manage our time more to achieve more.
In the end, but at the beginning of the 21st century we are tired, worn out and exhausted---calling it all the abundant life. We are believing the lie that the bitch-goddess haunts us with. “If you do more, then you will be more and then and only then will you have more.”
[1] Ecclesiastes 4:6, The Message