Ambition—Good or Bad

By Richard Weidner, Legacy Ventures Network (TriVenture Partner)

“Ambition is that grit in the soul which creates disenchantment with what is and puts the dare in dreams.” That’s one of my favorite quotes from Max Lucado. It was brought to mind when I was reading about the Tower of Babel in Genesis. The self-centered ambition of the residents of Babel was to build a tower to reach to the heavens to be like God, and to make a name for themselves. They planned, they organized, they financed, and they implemented the building of the tower so well that God intervened, and all of history was changed in a moment when He confused their languages.
There are many lessons to be learned from this. Two major ones are very applicable to the BAM movement.
The first is the need for God-centered, God-inspired, God-directed ambition. We need that grit in our souls that makes us disenchanted with the status quo and enables us to dream boldly and willing to take risks. The key here is, “what is the focus and purpose of our dreams?” History is littered with the tales of individuals, organizations and nations driven by blind ambition for self-aggrandizement, like building a tower to the heavens. Unfortunately, we also have a history in the Christian community of individuals and organizations driven by
blind ambition only to fail and fall in disgrace.
For the BAM movement to experience God’s blessing even more fully, we need to have that God-centered, God-inspired and God-fueled ambition. We need His Word and the Holy Spirit to stir that grit in our souls to dream and to do.
The second lesson that jumped out at me was how God put an end to the building of the tower. He disrupted the communication among the people of Babel. To complete the tower, they needed to communicate among themselves to get the job done. Once the communication broke down, so did the project. The task could only be completed if everyone involved was communicating and collaborating with each other. The goal was clear: to reach the heavens and be like God. The how was the challenge. Plans needed to be made. Research needed to be done. Skilled laborers and tools needed to be available. Funds were needed to make it happen. Leaders were needed in many areas to direct the planning and implementation. In all of these areas, communication and collaboration were essential to the task. When God destroyed that, the project collapsed.
What’s my point? None of us involved in the BAM movement can do it on our own. However, if we were to work together, bringing our skills, gifts, experience, wisdom and connections toward reaching the lost through business, what could God do through us for His glory?
If you would like information on how you can become involved in missional business opportunities, please contact me at: dweidner@legacyventuresnetwork.com
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