I Am Not Bound to Win-Daily Meditation 3.14.24
Today’s Quotation:
I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live up to what light I have. I must stand with anybody who stands right; stand with them while they are right and part with them when they go wrong.-Abraham Lincoln
Today’s Meditation on Not Bound to Win:
I used to think that winning was important in life. Some so many teachers and organizations teach this lie that it’s easy for us to buy into it as we’re growing up. I used to think that success in any venture was necessary and that the lack of success reflected me as a person.
Fortunately, those times are past. I don’t think of those things anymore, and I’m a much better person for having shed those outmoded ideals. Now I know that in losing and not succeeding, there are precious lessons to be learned that I wouldn’t learn if I won or succeeded. The most important things to me now in any venture are my morals and ethics, the parts of me that cause me to be true. What’s important to me is the light that I have, and that is seen by others, for if that light glows because I’m compromising my ethics or morals to succeed, then the light is false.
The way I see it, that light grows ever stronger the more I fail as long as I’m entirely true to myself and others. If I earn money through honest effort and ethical dealings, my light shines brighter than that of the incredibly rich person who has made his or her fortune by consistently compromising his or her morals.
The light is more important than success. If I find myself in a situation where I might succeed by partnering with someone who can take me there through means that I know are not moral or ethical, it’s time for me to find my own way. Success is great, but not at that price.
Questions to ponder About Not Bound to Win:
1. How critical is success in your life? How far would you go to achieve it?
2. How brightly does your light shine? How could you make it shine more brightly?
3. Do you stand with those who are right? How do you define “right”?
For further thought on Not Bound to Win:
Integrity is not a conditional word. It doesn’t blow in the wind or change with the weather. It is your inner image of yourself, and if you look in there and see a person who won’t cheat, you know you never will. -John D. MacDonald
If you missed our last Daily Meditation, it is here.
