Failure is a word no one wants to be attached to their name. Everyone wants to be successful, but success is not all it’s cracked up to be. We all like success, but it is sometimes bad for us. Success handled wrongly can cause us to be prideful. It can cause us to become self-reliant instead of relying on God. When success causes these types of results God has a way of bringing us down. Proverbs 16:18 warns us “after pride comes destruction.” God has a way of getting our attention. There are many things much worse than failure. We can succeed and be so proud of the accomplishment that we forget the one who helped us succeed.
Proverbs 16:18 “Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”
Failure is not a bad thing. There are many lessons that we can learn from failure that will cause us to be successful later. The Bible gives us many examples of those who failed greatly but succeeded later. I think of Peter, one of the great disciples of Christ. He was all in for Christ when the soldiers came to arrest Jesus in the garden. He was so consumed with protecting Jesus, that he cut off the ear of one of the soldiers. I contend, he was going for the head, and the guy moved, so he cut the ear. He had labored with Jesus and no doubt he loved him, but he fails miserably after Jesus was arrested. His fear caused him to deny Christ. An act that Jesus had told him would happen, but Peter vehemently denied he would ever deny Christ. However, in a few hours, he would do that very thing.
Luke 22:54-62 “Then took they him, and led him, and brought him into the high priest’s house. And Peter followed afar off. And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them. But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with him. And he denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not. And after a little while another saw him, and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not. And about the space of one hour after another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with him: for he is a Galilaean. And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou safest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew. And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And Peter went out, and wept bitterly.”
How should we handle failure? Just like Peter. He realized he had failed, and he wept bitterly. Sometimes failure is not because of something we did wrong, like Peter. Sometimes we can do all the right things and still not succeed. Yet, it is still ok to feel the remorse of the moment. Pushing aside our failure feelings can cause us to take the attitude of never trying again. If what you are doing is right and good, you need to “keep on keeping on.” No one ever succeeded in anything of great importance without a few mistakes and setbacks. Success takes persistence.
If we have done wrong, as Peter did, we need to allow the sorrow to change our heart, to determine we will do right no matter what. We need to build safeguards into our lives so that we won’t take that route again.
Peter went on to be one of the greatest preachers and disciples of Christ, in all of history. Peter learned from his failure. He learned that the flesh is capable of anything. Never think that because you are a Christian or a good person, that you are beyond doing things that break the heart of God. Fear and pride can get under our skin, and cause us to do things, we would never dream we are capable of doing. Our focus on any task needs to be on the one we are living for. We are to do all to His glory, and not our own. When we fail it doesn’t have to be fatal. If we are seeking to do something that is ok analyze where we failed, change the area that caused the failure, and keep on trying. Learning from our mistakes is a huge part of succeeding in life.
If you have failed, pray, repent if needed, and get up and go again. You are in good company. Peter failed by denying Christ. John Mark failed when he returned home instead of staying with Paul. Later he became a great follower of Christ. Sampson failed miserably, and it cost him much, but he went on to destroy the enemies of God, even though he was blind. David failed after he committed adultery, but later God called him a man after His own heart. Failure should be a pause, not an end.
