Last week I had the honor of addressing a number of Christian Business leaders in our city.  I spoke on the issue of failure, and was overwhelmed with the response.  One after another, men and women alike, some almost in tears, came up to me after and shared their deepest pains and how much they needed to hear that message.  Failure, it seems, is a common thread not just in those who are washed out, but in the stories of those who are moving ahead as well.

Much more dangerous than failing though, is our interpretation of our lack of success and our roadblocks.  You see, while failing is universal, responding appropriately is rare, and it is only as we understand the full extent of the story that we are caught up into that we can hope to construe the reason, and subsequently, our response to the onslaught of life.

That really is what is happening here, an onslaught.  Like barrage after barrage from enemy bombers, our lives are a story of constant opposition. And just as the spirits of those living in war torn villages are so often broken, our spirits too can feel hopeless. 

But understand this: that is exactly what our enemy wants, his plan is to take us to the point of despair, of just giving up, of agreeing with him that we were never meant to run this race anyway.  ‘Leave it to someone else, someone more talented, or better looking, or with more connections.’  Unfortunately, the more talented that you are (or the better looking that you appear, or the greater influence that you have) then the greater the resistance that you will encounter.  Someone needs to draw a line in the sand and say, ‘no.  No, we will not listen to your lies.  No, we will not back down.  No, we will not allow our failures to define us but rather to drive us forward.’

As I mentioned, failure is universal.  It is the acceptance of that truth, picking up our swords, and marching back to the front lines with our King that is the true measure of success.

To the  King,

David