How To Prevent Internal and External Failure
One of the greatest fears that people have today is ending their life as a failure. So many people resemble the famous comedian Chris Farley of Saturday Night Live Fame whose life ended in failure and death at 33 years of age. Chris experienced external success but lived with a nagging sense of internal failure. How do we overcome this sense of internal or external failure when we make mistakes?
But what do we do when we do make a mistake, do we give in and say to you, it is not worth trying. I will never be a success.
Illustration: He who never makes a mistake never makes anything.
Possibly A. Lincoln.
Quote: Even a turtle never goes anywhere unless it risks sticking out his head once in a while.
A person who wants to avoid failure realizes that success is found in the Lord and in His purposes for our lives. David wrote, “You will make known to me the paths of life. In your presence is fullness of joy and in your right hand are pleasures forever more.” (Psa. 16:9-11)
Let us look a several guidelines in avoiding various types of internal and external failure from the eyes of God.
1. Too many people allow their discouragements to get to them and quit prematurely.
Illustration: Definition of discouragement: Discouragement is dissatisfaction with the past, distaste for the present, and distrust of the future. It is ingratitude for the blessings of yesterday, indifference to the opportunities of today, and insecurity regarding strength for tomorrow. It is unawareness of the presence of beauty, unconcern for the needs of our fellowman, and unbelief in the promises of old. It is impatience with time, immaturity of thought, and impoliteness to God. William Ward.
Today in the Word, April 1989, p. 18.
"Casting all your care upon Him because He cares for you." Allow setbacks to be warning lights on the dashboard of our life that help alert you to take care of things before they become more serious.
2. Failure is never final until you let it be. Paul wrote, "Be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." (I Cor.15:58)
Illustration: Nobody wins all the time. Everyone occasionally faces setbacks. The greatest baseball player who ever lived got on base 39.4% of the time. The greatest soccer player, Pele of Brazil, only scored goals on less than 3% of his shots. Many of the greatest home run hitters of all time also struck out more than most other players. Nobody is expected to triumph every time - but some us would like to think we could. Mistakes are a part of life. Every defeat can either make us better or bitter, the choice is up to us. Let us discover some of the principles of preventing real failure.
The famous song, "They don’t know that I go running home when I fall down." Is a good reminder for us all. The Lord understands that we will make mistakes and learn how to be overcomers instead of being overcome by them.
3. You are never a failure unless you give up. Paul wrote, "Do not be weary in well doing for in due season you will reap if you faint not." (Gal. 6:9,10)
Illustration: An old hymn often cheers me when I am feeling weary in well doing. "Are you weary, are you heavy hearted. Tell it to Jesus. Tell it to Jesus. Are you grieving over joys departed. Tell it to Jesus alone. Chorus: Tell it to Jesus. Tell it to Jesus. He is a friend that’s well known. You’ve no other such a friend or brother. Tell it to Jesus alone." He will take your burden and replace it with encouragement, consolation of love, fellowship of the Spirit, His affection and compassion. (Phil. 2:1,2)
4. People are not counted out until they decide in their minds to surrender to their circumstances.
Illustration: Thomas Edison’s manufacturing facilities in West Orange, N.J., were heavily damaged by fire one night in December, 1914. Edison lost almost $1 million worth of equipment and the record of much of his work. The next morning, walking about the charred embers of his hopes and dreams, the 67-year-old inventor said: "There is value in disaster. All our mistakes are burned up. Now we can start anew."
Alan Loy McGinnis, The Power of Optimism
5. Failure results from ignoring the will of God. Jesus said, "If anyone is willing to do my will they will know of the teaching, whether it is from God or not." (John 7: 17) If you are willing to do what God calls you to do, He will supply you with the grace, provisions and energy to accomplish His purposes.
Illustration: During his days as guest lecturer at Calvin Seminary, R.B. Kuiper once used the following illustration of God’s sovereignty and human responsibility: I liken them to two ropes going through two holes in the ceiling and over a pulley above. If I wish to support myself by them, I must cling to them both. If I cling only to one and not the other, I go down.
R.B. Kuiper.
6. Failure results from trying to accomplish things in your own strength rather than relying on the Spirit’s power. Zephaniah 3: 17 says, "Not by power or by might, but by My Spirit says the Lord of hosts." The arm of human flesh will fail us if that is all we rely on.
Illustration: Be bigger than any problem through Christ who gives you the strength and power to do everything He asks you to do. Make a practice of overlooking your own faults or those of others. Do not over react to let downs, mistakes or anything that is less than perfect performance. Do not overemphasize hardships or over blow the difficulties you are facing. Remember we are more than conquerors through Him who loves us. Let the victory you have in Christ overshadow any temporary set back. (Rom. 8:37)Appropriate the rich resource, identity and power you have within you in the Holy Spirit.
7. Failure results from trying to rely on our own wisdom. Solomon wrote, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths." (Prov. 3:5,6)
Illustration: God our Father has made all things depend on faith so that whoever has faith will have everything, and whoever does not have faith will have nothing.
Martin Luther
A. Develop a healthy fear and reverence of the Lord at all times.
"Fear the Lord you His saints for to those who fear Him there is no want. The young lions lack and suffer hunger but they who seek the Lord will not lack one good thing."
B. Know that a healthy fear eliminates panicking when we are presented with setbacks. David wrote,” Blessed is the man who fears the Lord who greatly delights in His commandments. He will not fear when the evil day comes because His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord." (Psa. 112:1,2)
8. Failure results from comparing yourself to others. Paul wrote, "We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise." (2 Cor. 10: 12)
Illustration: Failure is an event, never a person.
William Brown, Welcome Stress!
9. Resist the temptation to compare yourself positively or negatively with others. Every person has unique gifts, perspectives and callings from our Lord. "We have different gifts according to the grace given to us and unique abilities and personalities that respond according to the way God has fashioned us. Think with sober judgment in accordance with the measure of faith God has given to you. (Rom. 12:3,4)
Take an inventory of all the good things you have instead of looking at the 50% of the glass that is empty.
"Count your blessings name them one by one and it will surprise you what the Lord has done."
10. Failure results from believing that you have somehow attained success. Paul wrote, "If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! ! !" (I Cor. 10: 12)
11. Failure results from becoming proud of your accomplishments. Solomon wrote, "When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom." Peter writes, "Likewise you younger submit yourselves to the elders and be clothed with humility. For God rejects the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourself under the mighty hand of God and He will exalt you in the proper time.
12. Failure comes when you forget about the sins of omission, disposition or wrong assumptions. Paul wrote, "Everything that does not come from faith is sin." (Rom. 14:23)
13. Failure comes to those who are so afraid of making mistakes that they do little. Real failure is failing to take advantage of the opportunities and all the commandments of God.
Illustration: Consider the man with one talent Jesus said to him, "You wicked and lazy servant. So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest." Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten talents. For whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away." (Matt. 25:26-29) God is a good businessman who wants a return on His investment in us.
14. Failure comes to those who do not plan well. Prior planning prevents poor performance. Solomon wrote, "The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the naive keep going and suffer for it." (Prov. 27: 12)
Quote: Smart people spend just as much time planning as they do executing their plans. "Any enterprise becomes strong through wise planning, becomes stronger through the use of common sense and stays strong by keeping abreast of the facts." (Prov. 24:3,4 - Living Bible)
17. Failure comes to those who are critical of others who succeed. Jesus said, "Before you look at the speck in your brothers eye, first remove the log from your own eye." (Matt. 7: 1,2)
Illustration: It is much easier to be critical than to be correct. Disraeli.
18. Failure comes to those who fail to follow the steps of successful Godly people. Hebrews 13: 7 says, "Remember those who led you who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith." (Heb. 13 :7)
Illustration: Percentage of American teens who say they want to be like their parents: 39%. Charis Conn, Ed., What Counts: The Complete Harper’s Index.
19. Failure comes to people who fail to pray and ask others to pray about their opportunities. Jesus said, "Apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:5)
Ask others to pray for you and utilize email and prayer letters to enlist an army of prayer supporters for your life and ministry exploits. I thank God for the hundreds of prayer intercessors that prayed for the thousands of requests that I sent to them through email and other means. We often have not because we do not ask.
Illustration: I fear John Knox’s prayers more than an army of ten thousand men.
Mary, Queen of Scotland
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus as the author and perfecter of our faith by praising Him, thanking Him and following Him with humble renunciation of what is good knowing that we can appropriate the promise, "Do not be overcome by evil or failure but overcome evil with good."
