Overcoming failure

 There is no one who has not failed at something in their lifetimes. Most of us have failed at many things. The only way to avoid failure is to never do anything, but the minute you begin something new you stand the chance at failing. Sometimes failure makes us afraid to attempt new things in our lives. Perhaps a failed relationship makes us fearful of entering into another relationship. A failed business may keep us from starting another one. Sometimes churches try something new that doesn't work well, and this makes them reluctant to try anything else new. In order to succeed in life we have to learn how to overcome failure.

Perhaps the best way to overcome failure is to not take it personally. Zig Ziglar used to say that failure was an event, not a person. Failing at something doesn't make you a failure; it means you are human. If we can learn to separate the event from the person the failure can be less damaging to us personally.

It's also important to recognize that failure is not permanent. Failure is simply one attempt at doing something that did not work out as you thought, but that does not mean that there may not be other ways to accomplish the thing you want to do. Failure is only final if you refuse to learn from it and quit. Failures can teach us many things if we are willing to learn them, and then we can apply those lessons to the next thing we attempt. I learned many things from a failed business a few years ago which I'm applying to a current business. I will not make the same mistakes again.

One of the lessons we can learn from our failures is that we do not know everything. Regular readers of this blog know that I'm a big fan of Dave Ramsey and his financial advice. You don't have to listen to his radio program long before you realize that many people keep making the same financial mistakes over and over again. When a person calls his program they are admitting they don't know how to manage their money and want to learn how to do it right. But, think of the millions of people who continue to struggle financially who never consider there might be a better way to manage their money. Recognizing that you do not know everything you need to know about a problem is a good first step in solving it.

Some of our failures come in our personal lives. We fail to be the people we know we should be. The Bible tells us that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That reminds us that we have all failed at different points in our lives. The good news is that God is the God of second chances, and third chances, and fourth chances. He never gives up on us. He is always ready to forgive when we ask for His forgiveness, and He can help us overcome those areas in our lives that gives us the most problems. Don't ever give up on yourself because you've failed at some aspect of your personal life. God hasn't given up on you, and you shouldn't either.