The parable in Isaiah 5 can help to throw light on the subject of success. God picked up a parable to describe Israel. Israel was described as a beautiful vine set on a fruitful hill by its owner. God who is the husbandman removed the stones from it and hedged it around. He built a winepress in readiness for the yield. Then the unthinkable happened. At harvest, the vineyard produced bitter or sour grapes which enraged the owner. Let us observe that the vineyard did produce something – it produced sour grapes. Note that bitter or sour grapes are not without their uses. However, because that was not what the vinedresser expected, He was displeased. The vineyard failed because it did not meet the expectation test.

Simply put, success is meeting the expectation of God. Success is not having things; it is not becoming something or looking like another person. Until you meet the expectation of God for your life or organisation, you are not truly successful.

What then is success? Simply put, success is meeting the expectation of God. Success is not having things; it is not becoming something or looking like another person. Until you meet the expectation of God for your life or organisation, you are not truly successful. The beginning of the journey to success, therefore, is this question: “Lord, what do You expect from me”. Having this perspective about success will show the futility of comparing ourselves with others. What God expects from you may not be exactly the same thing as what He expects from others. Since we cannot determine what He expects from individuals, it is puerile to use physical parameters to say someone is more successful than others.