I deal with people who feel like failures. Every day.
It could be because of relationships gone bad.
Business setbacks.
A personal life—that was private—but is not anymore.
Bad decisions intentionally done or bad circumstances—out of their control.
All of that and more—failure.
One reason people seem to identify with my teaching is that I’m not perfect. I’ve made lots of mistakes. I didn’t enter the ministry until I was 38 years old, and that was plenty of time to learn valuable life experiences by failure. (And, I haven’t quit making mistakes in ministry.)
Here’s what you need to understand though.
I’ve had failures—but I’m not a failure.
Because I got back up every time I failed.
Along the way—through failure—I’ve gained some insight into failure.
There are some misunderstandings about failing that you don’t necessarily know during the failing process.
Here are five things I’ve learned about failing:
1. Not everyone is talking about you.
This is a critical understanding, because it sometimes feels that way. As a result, sometimes you avoid people—even though you may need people in your life now more than ever. Sometimes you refuse to get back in the game—even to attend church—because you assume you’re the news on people’s mind. Yes, some people may be talking about you—for a while—but not for long. I’m not saying you aren’t important, but there will be a bigger story out there soon. Trust me. And, yours won’t be the flavor of the month for long. And for those who do like to talk about others—I’ve learned they are often trying to shift attention from their own failures. (You can also remind them it is a sin to gossip.)
2. Your attachment to the failure may never fully go away.
That’s hard, but it’s true. Rahab was always known as a “harlot” in the Bible. She kept her title. When triggered in someone’s mind, they may remember your failure for years. History books record great failures of people with great success. And I’m not sure it should be our goal to completely lose that failure reminder. It’s a way we can demonstrate grace. We can be an example to others who have failed—and are seeking hope. God uses our failures as a source of strength for others. But whether or not people can label you a failure will depend on how you respond to failure—how you proceed after the failure.
3. God loves you more than you can imagine, even when you fail.
In fact, in my experience with failure, whether it was by intentional sin or through no fault of your own, it breaks your heart at some point. My Bible says God is close to the brokenhearted. And your failure is what makes you a great candidate for grace—something God loves to extend to those who will receive it.
4. Forgiving yourself may be the most difficult thing.
It’s true. The hardest person to forgive for failing is almost always ourselves. We usually hold our failures against ourselves much longer than the world does. And the enemy loves to use that principle against us too. Why not? It works, right? But forgiveness is a choice. Receiving God’s grace is a choice. Moving forward is a choice. Choosing your next steps wisely—that’s a choice too.
5. The best days of your life may be after the failure—not before.
Wow! If only I could have understood that during some of my darker moments due to failure. If you refuse to let failure control you and you allow God, by His grace, to shape the rest of your story, you may just experience some of your best moments of life in the days ahead. That’s my story. And for that I’m thankful.
Obviously, no one should ever desire failure so they can learn from it. But failure is a part of living in a fallen world. The key is to not allow failure to be our dominant identification. That’s determined by what we do after the failure.
What have you learned from failure?
