Putting My Ladder on the Right Wall

How do you define success? I've been pondering this since last Tuesday, when Elder Lowell M. Snow came and spoke in devotional. As he was speaking I wrote a list of criteria for success in my life right now.

Spiritual - How well do I follow the promptings of the Spirit? Am I consistent in my prayers, scripture study and Visiting Teaching?

Mental - Am I learning something new every day? Do I have a 4.0? Do I read outside of class? Am I jumping hoops or absorbing information? Am I consistently practicing my violin?

Physical - Do I eat whole foods and do I eat limited amounts of sweets and junk food? Do I exercise at least once a week? Am I reaching goals for distance running, climbing, weight training etc.? Do I go to bed by midnight and get up before 8?

Social - Do I make efforts to spend time with my family? Do I call my close friends to talk? Do I make new friends? How are my relationships with my roommates?

Pretty good list, eh? That's what I thought. And then he kept talking.

"Growing up in a small Southern Utah town I thought success meant making the team, having good friends, getting good grades, and not getting caught doing stupid things. When I became a teenager success took on new meaning: having fun, being popular, getting a drivers license, getting a date, becoming independent. As a missionary, success seemed to be found only in finding, teaching, and baptizing investigators. By the time I received an undergraduate degree I was not only a new father but also a newly commissioned officer in the U.S. Army and success for me meant surviving an unpopular, violent war in Southeast Asia. When I emerged from graduate school and started to practice law, I was sure success meant finding clients, winning cases, and getting paid. In fact, since entering the workforce it has always been tempting to find success through having more money in the bank, a better house in the burbs, and a newer car in the garage."

"You are in the early days of your journey and the light and knowledge available at this university can help you climb the ladder of success. As you climb that ladder in the days ahead make sure it is never leaning against the wrong wall."

"In the end it is a missionary’s commitment to pursue a course that is pleasing to God that determines whether or not their mission is successful. So it is in life. It is the level of our commitment to pursue a course pleasing to God that determines whether we will be successful in this life or not. Preach My Gospel gives all of us insight into how God views success. Consider these words:

You can know you have been a successful missionary when you:

Love people and desire their salvation.

Obey with exactness.

Live so that you can receive and know how to follow the Spirit, who will show you where to go, what to do, and what to say.

Develop Christ-like attributes.

Work effectively every day, do your very best to bring souls to Christ, and seek earnestly to learn and improve.

Help build up the Church wherever you are assigned to work.

Warn people of the consequences of sin. Invite them to make and keep commitments.

Teach and serve other[s].

Go about doing good and serving people at every opportunity.⁴

These truths have wonderful application beyond missionary work. I believe you can know you are having a successful life when you do these same things."

Isn't that fabulous? He laid everything out so well in his talk. You should read the whole thing. It totally changed my priorities and definition of success.