Good Success Day #28: The Weight of the Crown
“For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” — Esther 4:14 (NIV)
THE JOURNEY
Silas spent fifteen years climbing the fiercely competitive ladder of a national logistics firm. He worked late, navigated office politics flawlessly, and finally earned the title he had been chasing his entire career: Executive Vice President.
He had the corner office. He had the salary. He had the coveted seat at the boardroom table. For the first six months, Silas simply enjoyed the view. He had “made it.”
Then, a crisis hit. During a confidential board meeting, the CEO proposed a restructuring plan that would effectively terminate the pensions of hundreds of their oldest, blue-collar warehouse workers in order to artificially inflate the quarterly stock price.
Silas knew it was legally gray and morally bankrupt. But as he looked around the polished mahogany table, the other executives were nodding in agreement.
Panic set in. If Silas spoke up, he risked alienating the CEO. He risked his bonus. He risked the very seat he had spent a decade and a half bleeding to get. His instinct was self-preservation: Keep your head down. It’s not your department. Protect your crown.
That night, Silas couldn’t sleep. He called an older mentor from his church and explained the dilemma, admitting he was terrified of losing his position.
His mentor listened quietly, then said, “Silas, why do you think God let you get that seat in the first place? Do you think He gave you that promotion just so you could buy a nicer boat? You didn’t get that seat for your own comfort; you got it for those warehouse workers. If you aren’t willing to risk the seat to do what’s right, you don’t actually own the seat—the seat owns you.”
The next morning, Silas walked into the boardroom and spent his political capital. He pushed back. He presented alternative financial models. He made it clear he would not sign off on the restructuring. It was a brutal, tense fight that nearly cost him his job, but ultimately, the board backed down. The pensions were saved.
Silas realized that day that influence isn’t a trophy to be displayed; it is a currency to be spent.
Heart of the Matter
There is a profound danger in achieving success: we tend to forget what the success is actually for. When we finally get the platform, the wealth, or the title, our default human setting shifts from hustle to hoard. We become obsessed with protecting what we’ve built.
But God does not grant influence for the purpose of self-preservation.
In the book of Esther, a young Jewish woman becomes the Queen of Persia. When her people face a genocide, her uncle Mordecai sends her a chilling warning: Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone will escape. He reminds her that her royal position is an assignment, not an accident.
If you have Good Success, you have power. You have a voice that carries weight in your home, your office, or your community.
Here is the dynamic of influential Good Success:
- You love God by spending your capital on others. You recognize that your title, your wealth, and your network are tools loaned to you by the Master. You love Him by speaking up for the person not in the room, holding the door open for the next generation, and risking your own comfort to advocate for what is right.
- He loves you back by giving your success eternal weight. When you view your influence as a stewardship rather than a possession, God entrusts you with more of it. Good Success is the profound, soul-deep satisfaction of knowing that your promotion became someone else’s rescue.
Faith in Action
Influence stagnates when it isn’t moving. Today, you are going to spend some of your capital.
The Challenge: Identify one person in your sphere who currently lacks the influence, voice, or network that you possess.
- Use your platform to elevate them today.
- Endorse a junior colleague’s idea in a meeting.
- Make a warm email introduction connecting a struggling entrepreneur to a potential client in your network.
- Speak up about an unfair policy that doesn’t directly affect you, but affects someone with less power.
- Say internally: “I am spending my capital for someone else. I am here for such a time as this.”
Prayer for the Day
Lord of All Authority, I confess that I often view my success as my own private property. When I gain a little bit of power or comfort, my first instinct is to build a wall around it to protect myself. Forgive my selfishness. Remind me today that every ounce of influence I have is a temporary stewardship from You. Give me the courage of Esther. Show me who I am supposed to advocate for, and give me the bravery to risk my own seat at the table to do what is right. Let my success be a shelter for others. Amen.
SUCCESS Note
“Leadership is a stewardship; it is temporary, and you are accountable for it.” — Andy Stanley