"The greatest barrier to success is the fear of failure." Sven Eriksson
"Failure is a detour, not a dead-end street." Zig Ziglar
"Success is not final failure is not fatal. It's the. courage to continue that counts” - Winston Churchill
"It is a mistake to suppose that people succeed through success; they often succeed through failures." Author unknown
Have you ever failed at anything? I’m not talking about failing a test in school, although that can be traumatic. I’m not talking about a health-related test either although failing one may mean life or death and even long-term suffering. Let me give you some examples of things I’ve failed at. I failed at my first marriage, I failed at jobs resulting in layoffs and being fired, I’ve failed at managing my finances, and there have been other failures.
How did you feel when you failed? Here’s how I felt. I felt that I left my family down and by family I mean my entire family from my ancestors to my immediate family. I felt I let my friends down. I let my employer down. I let God down. I felt terrible. In short, I felt like a failure.
The fear of failure paralyzes or neutralizes many people. We consciously or subconsciously ignore our sins and failures because we believe to admit them is to admit failure. People often refuse to tackle a job or take on responsibility for fear of failure. People believe if they fail, they are no good. They think failure means you are a bad person. In other words, YOU ARE A FAILURE!
How Can Failure be Good?
We usually think of failure as negative. But wise people know how to take advantage of failure.
I’ll let you in on something that I learned even amid my failures. God doesn’t care that you failed He can still use you. Think about that.
Romans 8:28, 35-37 (NLT) 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. 35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”)37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
Here are some ways that Pastor Rick Warren says that failure can be good for you.
1. God uses failure to educate us.
Mistakes are simply learning experiences. And some lessons can only be learned through failure. The Bible says, “A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful” (Proverbs 28:13 TLB).
If you're not making any mistakes, then you're not learning. If you're not taking any risks, then you're not growing. You have to let go of your fear of failure, because it’s keeping you from the kind of spiritual growth God planned for you. The freedom from the fear of failure is the freedom to grow.
2. God uses failure to motivate us.
“Sometimes it takes a painful situation to make us change our ways” (Proverbs 20:30 GNT). Often we change when we feel the heat, not when we see the light. If you’re afraid of failure, then you’re going to get stuck! When you fail, God may be trying to get your attention to move you in a new direction.
3. God uses failure to build our character.
“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us—they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character” (Romans 5:3-4 TLB).
Failure doesn’t automatically grow your character. Sometimes it just makes people bitter. Failure only builds your character when you look at it with the right perspective, respond to it correctly, and learn from it.
"Failure is a detour, not a dead-end street." Zig Ziglar
"Success is not final failure is not fatal. It's the. courage to continue that counts” - Winston Churchill
"It is a mistake to suppose that people succeed through success; they often succeed through failures." Author unknown
Have you ever failed at anything? I’m not talking about failing a test in school, although that can be traumatic. I’m not talking about a health-related test either although failing one may mean life or death and even long-term suffering. Let me give you some examples of things I’ve failed at. I failed at my first marriage, I failed at jobs resulting in layoffs and being fired, I’ve failed at managing my finances, and there have been other failures.
How did you feel when you failed? Here’s how I felt. I felt that I left my family down and by family I mean my entire family from my ancestors to my immediate family. I felt I let my friends down. I let my employer down. I let God down. I felt terrible. In short, I felt like a failure.
The fear of failure paralyzes or neutralizes many people. We consciously or subconsciously ignore our sins and failures because we believe to admit them is to admit failure. People often refuse to tackle a job or take on responsibility for fear of failure. People believe if they fail, they are no good. They think failure means you are a bad person. In other words, YOU ARE A FAILURE!
How Can Failure be Good?
We usually think of failure as negative. But wise people know how to take advantage of failure.
I’ll let you in on something that I learned even amid my failures. God doesn’t care that you failed He can still use you. Think about that.
Romans 8:28, 35-37 (NLT) 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. 35 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?36 (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”)37 No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
Here are some ways that Pastor Rick Warren says that failure can be good for you.
1. God uses failure to educate us.
Mistakes are simply learning experiences. And some lessons can only be learned through failure. The Bible says, “A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful” (Proverbs 28:13 TLB).
If you're not making any mistakes, then you're not learning. If you're not taking any risks, then you're not growing. You have to let go of your fear of failure, because it’s keeping you from the kind of spiritual growth God planned for you. The freedom from the fear of failure is the freedom to grow.
2. God uses failure to motivate us.
“Sometimes it takes a painful situation to make us change our ways” (Proverbs 20:30 GNT). Often we change when we feel the heat, not when we see the light. If you’re afraid of failure, then you’re going to get stuck! When you fail, God may be trying to get your attention to move you in a new direction.
3. God uses failure to build our character.
“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us—they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character” (Romans 5:3-4 TLB).
Failure doesn’t automatically grow your character. Sometimes it just makes people bitter. Failure only builds your character when you look at it with the right perspective, respond to it correctly, and learn from it.
RSS Feed