Not every successful person started out that way. Some of them had to cover very bumpy ground before they were lifted into the stratosphere.
- Steve Jobs, Apple icon, was fired by his own company, only to come back stronger than ever.
- J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter novels, was on welfare before selling her first book.
- Sylvester Stallone, actor, was so poor he sold his dog before making it big in the Rocky series.
- Walt Disney, animator, resorted to eating dog food before Mickey Mouse made his fortunes.
- Tim Allen, comedian, spent two years in federal prison on cocaine charges before turning his life around.
- Oprah Winfrey, talk-show icon and actress, was fired for getting too emotionally involved in her stories.
Now read about these bumpy rides to the stratosphere:
Revelation 20:4 tells us:
“I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.”
It doesn’t get much bumpier than that. Being beheaded is awful, but to reign with Christ? We can’t get any higher.
Exodus 20:9-10 tells us:
“Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates.”
The labors we endure now are but for a time. Our rest is coming, for we will soon enjoy the Day of the Lord.
John 8:31-32 tells us:
“So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, ‘If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’ ”
This passage tells us how to set our journey upward into motion. We start in the Word of God.
Romans 8:16 tells us:
“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.”
Whatever our station at this present time, whether low or high, we can claim our future kingship by the Spirit of the Everlasting God.
2 Timothy 3:17 tells us:
“That the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”
Sometimes it is the bumpy ground that motivates us to our higher success. Both Steve Jobs and Tim Allen gave credit to their failure as the motivating force that drove them to their future success.
Where we are is not where we’ll stay. God has greater works for us to do.
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