Day 12: Failing Forward
Failing Forward
This past Saturday, I had the joy of watching our four-year-old boy play his first flag football game! From prepping him with some daddy pep talk, tying his cleats, and making sure his flags were on tightly, I enjoyed every bit and all in with that good ol’ daddy pride!
You can imagine how I must’ve felt when I watched my son take the first offensive snap from the backfield and started eluding defenders and racing down the sideline at full speed. But then, it happened. For some reason, out of nowhere, and to my surprise, my wife’s son decided to go the OPPOSITE direction in circles before he realized that his coach, the mama’s, and yes, his FATHER were screaming to him to go the other way. His flag was snatched on the one-yard line in the enemy’s (yes I said enemy) territory.
As I chuckle about this while writing, I can’t seem to see myself in that run of my son. Perhaps you can relate too. Have you ever felt like this in life? You were on a roll, and suddenly, you made a mistake? You did something that even made you say to yourself what Steve Urkel used to say: “Did I do that?” If you’ve been there, this means that you’re human.
There is power in making mistakes if we choose to learn from them and allow them to propel us forward. If you study Thomas Edison and his journey towards getting the light bulb invented, you would find that he had over 1,000 unsuccessful attempts. It’s fitting then and hits home when he says, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
For our prayer target today, I want to encourage you to thank God for your failures and the lessons that they have taught you. If you’re in the midst of a failure, I want to encourage you to ask God to help you see the lesson and to NOT GIVE UP! We all will fail at some point in our life. Allow failure to be a learning experience to help you do better next time. Don’t let your failures define you. By God’s grace, let them help you move forward.
Jeremiah 8:4- “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says:” ‘When people fall down, do they not get up? When someone turns away, do they not return?
Proverbs 24:16- The righteous may fall seven times but still get up, but the wicked will stumble into trouble.
Psalm 145:14- He helps those who are in trouble; he lifts those who have fallen.
You can imagine how I must’ve felt when I watched my son take the first offensive snap from the backfield and started eluding defenders and racing down the sideline at full speed. But then, it happened. For some reason, out of nowhere, and to my surprise, my wife’s son decided to go the OPPOSITE direction in circles before he realized that his coach, the mama’s, and yes, his FATHER were screaming to him to go the other way. His flag was snatched on the one-yard line in the enemy’s (yes I said enemy) territory.
As I chuckle about this while writing, I can’t seem to see myself in that run of my son. Perhaps you can relate too. Have you ever felt like this in life? You were on a roll, and suddenly, you made a mistake? You did something that even made you say to yourself what Steve Urkel used to say: “Did I do that?” If you’ve been there, this means that you’re human.
There is power in making mistakes if we choose to learn from them and allow them to propel us forward. If you study Thomas Edison and his journey towards getting the light bulb invented, you would find that he had over 1,000 unsuccessful attempts. It’s fitting then and hits home when he says, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
For our prayer target today, I want to encourage you to thank God for your failures and the lessons that they have taught you. If you’re in the midst of a failure, I want to encourage you to ask God to help you see the lesson and to NOT GIVE UP! We all will fail at some point in our life. Allow failure to be a learning experience to help you do better next time. Don’t let your failures define you. By God’s grace, let them help you move forward.
Jeremiah 8:4- “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says:” ‘When people fall down, do they not get up? When someone turns away, do they not return?
Proverbs 24:16- The righteous may fall seven times but still get up, but the wicked will stumble into trouble.
Psalm 145:14- He helps those who are in trouble; he lifts those who have fallen.
Posted in September 2022 Fast
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Day 1: Meditate on the Power of GodDay 2: Dependence on God Through Prayer and FastingDay 3: Fighting our Battles BiblicallyDay 4: Real Worshippers Never Sit DownDay 5: Power in our Praise!Day 6: Spirit-Empowered for the ImpossibleDay 7: A Man Just Like UsDay 8: Short-term denial, long-term gainDay 9: The Power of ANDDay 10: New Seasons, New ReasonsDay 11: Sacrificial LivingDay 12: Failing ForwardDay 13: Keep it GoingDay 14: Be Still and KnowDay 15: PerspectiveDay 16: Don\'t Ever StopDay 17: Trust Jesus, pick up your mat, and walk!Day 18: Take off the MaskDay 19: A New ThingDay 20: You've Been Put on NoticeDay 21: Keep Jesus Front and Center