Failing at life

Sometimes….. we fail at life. 

We can be doing well, or we can barely be hanging on, but it still hits us like a ton of bricks when we fail. We find ourselves in this crisis or up against this roadblock out of nowhere and are shell-shocked.

Right now, many of us are struggling with new realities – jobs lost, schedules changed, new challenges – that are out of our control completely. We may also be facing some things that are not so great because we failed to plan, or made some wrong decisions. While there may be correlations between overall soul health and “success” there is certainly no promise that just because you’re close to God, things will always go “well” for you. In fact, Jesus seems to indicate the opposite is true sometimes. 

But even if we accept this, it doesn’t make failure any easier. So how do we hang onto the notion of “loving God” in these times of failure? I’d like to suggest a couple things:

• Declare what you know to be true and good. 

 

• Cling to those truths. Repeat them over and over if you need to.

 

• Don’t be afraid to take it all to God – the anger, the mess, the pain. If He’s not big enough to handle it, He’s no kind of God I want to serve.

In doing this I’ve found that the failure gets put into perspective. That while it still may sting, it is not the kiss of death. If we can tell ourselves the right story, and take it to a big God, we’ll make it through.

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Joel & Jeff

P.S. – here’s a few of our go-to truths, and a prayer for you to pray in the face of failure.

A few scriptures we cling to when we feel like I’ve failed at life, or life is failing us:

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.”

“His mercies are new every morning.”

“Be strong and courageous.”

“Do not fear, for I am with you.”

“ I will be with you always, even to the very end of the age.”

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths.”

 

Here’s a prayer you can pray if you don’t know what else to say:

God, I trust you. 

I lean on you.

I cling to you today as the worldly wisdom of my efforts feel foolish. 

I declare your goodness and I thank you for your provision. 

I desperately need you. 

I do not have answers or vision. 

I am going to need you every step of the way. 

And that’s just how I want it.

Amen.