Ambition

In life, men are always striving - striving for a better job with higher income, striving for excellence, and so on. We are on a quest for great achievement and happiness. Everyone wants to be somebody.

A lot of people are driven to do evil to achieve much. Maybe we are born evil beings - evil tendencies "kick in" at the right time. It is a struggle to be good (rather than evil), to always make wise choices, to resist temptation, and so on. Keep up the fight!

Songs that remind us we can easily be greedy and evil.....

I Want It All
"I want it all, the fame and the fortune and more....."

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5xxSRvl5VM&index=3&list=PLmYXTlZN4bBLiYNV-KrhlU0dV3NS6jpHQ)


I'm Bad By Michael Jackson
"You know I'm bad, I'm bad, you know it...."

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sd4SJVsTulc&list=PLmYXTlZN4bBLiYNV-KrhlU0dV3NS6jpHQ&index=5)

MainMessageForToday
A lot of ambitious people are go-getters who pursue fame and fortune at the expense of peace and tranquility.

Theme for the week: Peace of Mind, which follows the previous theme Contentment.

"All I want is everything,
Yes everything too much is not enough,
I'm sick of settling for in between,
And I'm not givin' up,
As long as it feels right,
At least we know that we're alive."
- From the song 'All I Want Is Everything' by Victoria Justice

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0grukU7L2HU

MainMessageForToday
Many may ask: If a person is poor (does not have much possessions or wealth), is it okay to be greedy / go after more without much thought of contentment? What is your answer?

Theme for the week: Contentment, which follows the previous theme/topic Ambition.

From the song 'Who the Cap Fit' by Bob Marley:

Man to man is so unjust, children,
You don't know who to trust,
Your worst enemy could be your best friend,
And your best friend your worst enemy.

Some will eat and drink with you,
Then behind them su-su 'pon you,
Only your friend know your secrets,
So only he could reveal it.

Some will hate you, pretend they love you now,
Then behind they try to eliminate you,
But who Jah bless, no one curse,
Thank God we're past the worse.

Hypocrites and parasites,
Will come up and take a bite,
And if your night should turn to day,
A lot of people would run away.

Who the cap fit, let them wear it,
Who the cap fit, let them wear it,
Said I throw me corn, me no call no fowl...
(translation: I put it out there, I did not call/label anyone)
I saying, 'Cluuk-cluuk-cluuk, cluck-cluck-cluck'

https://youtu.be/zOMMWeExwh4

"It is hard work to control the workings of inclination and turn the bent of nature; but that it may be done, I know from experience. God has given us, in a measure, the power to make our own fate: and when our energies seem to demand a sustenance they cannot get--when our will strains after a path we may not follow--we need neither starve from inanition, not stand still in despair: we have but to seek another nourishment for the mind, as strong as the forbidden fruit it longed to taste--and perhaps purer; and to hew out for the adventurous foot a road as direct and broad as the one Fortune has blocked up against us, if rougher than it."
- Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre 

"I would rather be a little nobody, then to be a evil somebody."
- Abraham Lincoln

"Nothing becomes some women more than the prick of ambition. Love, on the contrary, may make them very dull."
- Françoise Sagan

"The biggest changes in a women's nature are brought by love; in man, by ambition."
- Rabindranath Tagore

"Great ambition is the passion of a great character. Those endowed with it may perform very good or very bad acts. All depends on the principals which direct them."
- Napoleon Bonaparte

MainMessageForToday
Ambition affects people differently. Those with good character are not likely to yield to the evil inclinations of ambition.

From the song 'For the Love of Money' by The O'Jays
(The song's title comes from a well-known Bible verse, 1 Timothy 6:10: "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (King James Version).)

I know that money is the root of all evil,
Do funny things to some people.
Give me a nickel, brother can you spare a dime,
Money can drive some people out of their minds.
For the love of money,
No good, no good, no good,
For the love of money,
Don't sell ya soul for the money - no, no

http://youtu.be/GXE_n2q08Yw

In the ultimate analysis it is the man's motive which determines his character as well as his acts.
"As he thinketh within himself, so is he." -- Prov.23:7.
With many men the strongest motive is the desire to surpass others. It not only leads them to perform certain acts, but in so doing shapes their habits.
- http://biblehub.com/library/kent/the_making_of_a_nation/study_vi_the_power_of.htm

Do you remember the story of Jacob and Esau from the Holy Bible?
Jacob was ambitious. Encouraged by his mother, he persuaded his brother Esau to sell him his birthright for "pennies" (some lentil stew). Esau is usually viewed as the sinner or the one who did an ungodly thing...
"In the New Testament, Esau’s choice to sell his birthright is used as an example of ungodliness—a 'godless' person who will put physical desires over spiritual blessings (Hebrews 12:15-17). By his negative example, Esau teaches us to hold fast to what is truly important, even if it means denying the appetites of the flesh." - GotQuestions.org, http://www.gotquestions.org/Jacob-and-Esau.html

MainMessageForToday
Ambitious people are all around. Do not let them take advantage of you!

MainMessageForToday
Ambitious people are all around. Do not let them take advantage of you!

From the song 'I Believe I Can Fly' by R. Kelly:

I believe I can fly,
I believe I can touch the sky,
I think about it every night and day,
Spread my wings and fly away...

https://youtu.be/GIQn8pab8Vc

"A man’s worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions."
― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations