”...Success, like happiness, cannot be pursured; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side-effect of one’s personal dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one’s surrender to a person other than oneself.  Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success: you have to let it happen by not caring about it.”

-Victor Frankl, from the preface to the 1984 edition of Man’s Search For Meaning

Despite his deep insights into spiritual truths, my understanding is that Frankl is not a Christian.  I find it both embarrasing and enlighteing as to the state of western “Christian” throught that one of the most popular teachings of the past several decades is that we should, and must, demand and claim what we want - posessions, happiness, etc.  All of those things are promised to us, and I expect to (and do) receive them.  But God’s promise is that these blessings will naturally ensue from a life surrendered to His will and spent in following Him.  I personally believe that it is insulting to demand that He do what He promised He would do.  I trust Him to do what He promised - His promise is good enough for me.  When I grasped at success and happines, it eluded me.  My job is to follow Him - to submit my life to a cause - THE cause - greater than myself.  Success, and happines, will ensue (and is, in fact ensuing in my life as I never imagined it could.