Romans 12:1(NKJV), “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.”

As people, we have our own definition of what success looks like. God has His opinion on it too. In 2 Kings we read about a great commander of the Syrian army, Naaman. In the eyes of people, he was a great success because of what he had accomplished, and yet he suffered from the incurable disease of leprosy. Success isn’t something you do, it’s who you are. If you have a relationship with God, and you are faithful to do what He told you to do - you are a success. The hero of the story of Naaman, is the little slave girl, who in spite of the brutality of being violently torn away from the safety of her home and family, obviously loved the Lord and served Him wholeheartedly. Because she knew the Lord and trusted in Him, she obeyed His ways and served her mistress faithfully, in a strange land, amongst a strange people. Even with all the injustice done to her, she surrendered her hurt and all bitterness to the Lord. She allowed Him to heal her heart and let His love flow from her. We know this because of the way she cared about the well-being of the family and household that owned her. She was the one who initiated Naaman’s coming to Elisha to be healed. The memory of this little girl would be insignificant and completely forgotten, but over 4000 years later, we read about her self-less obedience in scripture. Even if you haven’t seen the completion of what you started in your simple step of obedience, or if you haven’t witnessed the full manifestation of its results - you are a success for obeying God, and faithfully doing what He has called you to do. The truth is, our part is drawing close to the Lord, hearing His voice, believing Him and doing what He says to do. His part is the result, regardless of whether what we do is recognized by others or not. When we stand before the Lord, we will give an account of our simple obedience to what He told us to do. Today, present yourself as a living-sacrifice, to be a vessel fully consecrated to Him. Hear His heart and be an extension of His love, righteousness and goodness to others - this is your reasonable service, and true success will measured by it.