What is your ambition? What do you aspire to do? Who do you aspire to be?
America is a nation built on aspiration; it is the heart of the American dream. It seems that we are constantly striving to “be all you can be” as the old Army slogan put it. Ambition is a primary virtue in the American mind.
Aspire is a fascinating word. It originally meant “to breathe upon.” Its root in Latin is shared with respire (to breathe) and perspire (to sweat). Somewhere in the Middle Ages it came to mean “to strive for, seek eagerly to attain, long to reach.”
The Greek word that is most translated as aspire or ambition shows up three times in the New Testament. The Apostle Paul uses the word to speak of himself (“I make it my ambition to proclaim the Gospel” – Romans 15:20) and the life of a Christian (“So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim (our ambition) to please Christ.” – 2 Corinthians 5:9).
We should pay attention to that word. What we aspire to, what our ambition is pointed toward, will dictate our lives. You may remember that cheesy motivational poster from your high school guidance counselor’s office: “Aim for failure and you'll always succeed.” As simple as it sounds, it is vital to remember that we often end up where we aim.
So again I will ask: What do you aspire to do? What is your ambition in 2024?
The third place this word shows up is in 1 Thessalonians: “But we urge you, beloved...to aspire to live quietly, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands...” (4:10b-11)
The aspiration of the Christian life, according to the Bible, should be to live a quiet life, mind your own business, and work with your hands.
This runs counter to what our society tells us. This runs counter to what we may hear from many teachers and influencers in our day that are constantly telling us to do more, to earn more money and more acclaim, and to get as much attention as possible for what we are doing. We are concerned with optics, image, and perception over essence. This is not the way of Jesus.
The Christian life is a hidden life. We ourselves are hidden in Christ when we are baptized (Colossians 3:3). Jesus tells us to hide in our closets when we pray (Matthew 6:6) and to keep our good deeds hidden even from ourselves (Matthew 6:3).
Aspire to live a quiet life. Aspire to pray to God our Father who sees your hidden needs and your secret hopes. Make it your ambition to mind today’s business in your own hidden life, trusting that God will care for the business of other people and the business of tomorrow. Above all, Jesus tells us, simply and quietly seek first God’s Kingdom and everything else will take care of itself (Matthew 6:33).