Failure is Not Final

How long has it been since your last failure? According to Wikipedia, “Failure is the state or condition of not meeting a desirable or intended objective, and may be viewed as the opposite of success.” We’ve all failed, including Thomas Edison, who said, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Because Albert Einstein didn’t speak until he was four years old, his teachers said he wouldn’t amount to much. Walt Disney was fired from a newspaper job because he lacked imagination and had no original ideas. Oprah Winfrey was demoted from news anchor because they concluded, she wasn’t fit for television. Michael Jordan was cut from his High School basketball team. The Beatles were rejected by Decca Recording Studios because they reportedly had no future in show business. At age thirty, Steve Jobs was removed from a company he started. From a Biblical perspective, a study of Bible characters reveals that most were men and women who failed at some point, and some of them drastically, but who refused to continue living in their failure. The Psalmist wrote, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholds him with His hand” (Psalm 37:23-24). The next time you experience failure, know that failure is not final, trust God, and try again.

Pray with me for the following global concerns:
• Pray for those from Romania, who will be traveling to Serbia to look at the work there and to encourage new colleagues in that area.
• Pray for Mary in Israel, as she begins leading ESL classes on February 21.
• Pray for Todd, a Chaplain, who arrived this week in Afghanistan for a second tour. Please pray for his safety, his family and his ministry with his unit.
• Pray for Ashley and April as they house hunt on Vancouver Island, Canada this week prior to moving there next month to plant a church.