Failure

"Do you ever feel like you're failing at everything but failing?"

I read this somewhere recently. I think I saw it on facebook. Do you ever feel like that? Like you are failing at everything you do or try?

Random House Webster's College Dictionary lists several definitions of the word 'fail'. One is "to fall short of success or achievement in something expected, attempted, desired, or approved". Another is "to be or become deficient or lacking; be insufficent or absent; fall short". And still another is "to lose strength or vigor, become weak".

Have you ever experienced any of those definitions? I sure have! There are many times that I feel like a failure. I think we all have at some point. We need to remind ourselves though that it's okay to fail at things. We are not perfect. We just do not need to let it destroy us or discourage us from 'keeping on keeping on' as they say. I could list many examples in my own life, but I will only mention one. One thing that I fail at a lot is in the realm of housekeeping. I only have 1 child, a 6 year old son, but if you were to walk into my house on any given day, take today for example, you would think that I had a brood of kids. I've accepted that I am not a perfect housekeeper. I've accepted that my house will never be 'guest ready'. We have to accept our failures in life and move on. We can not dwell on them. Yes we can work on them, but we don't need to let them define who we are and what we are about. It's like when taking a test. If we fail the test, it doesn't mean we are dumb. One failed test (or anything) doesn't mean it's the end of your life. Don't let your failures define you. Keep trying. Don't give up. Accept that failure is a part of life. I think accepting our failures helps us. It helps to be realistic. We just don't need to be pessimistic.

Always remember that even though we fail at things, there is One who never fails. There is God who will always help us. Deuteronomy 31:6 says "Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." Also, Deuteronomy 31:8 says "And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed." Joshua 1:5 says "There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." Even though I may fail at things, I trust that God will help me through the failures and He will never fail me.

These are just some thoughts I wanted to share. I hope they made sense and I would love to hear your thoughts on this as well.


Some quotes on failure:

"Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor."
Truman Capote

"Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success."
Dale Carnegie


"Failures are steps in the ladder of success."
James Allen


"For every failure, there's an alternative course of action. You just have to find it. When you come to a roadblock, take a detour."
Mary Kay Ash

"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm."
Winston Churchill

"Success is never final. Failure is never fatal. It is courage that counts."
Winston Churchill

"Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you’re going to do now and do it."
Will Durant

"Be of good cheer. Do not think of today's failures, but of the success that may come tomorrow. You have set yourselves a difficult task, but you will succeed if you persevere; and you will find joy in overcoming obstacles. Remember, no effort that we make to attain something beautiful is ever lost."
Helen Keller

"We cannot choose the things that will happen to us. But we can choose the attitude we will take toward anything that happens. Success or failure depends on your attitude."
Alfred A. Montapert

"Failure is delay, but not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead-end street."
William Arthur Ward


- by Amy

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Sharing the Word

This past Saturday, I had the pleasure of attending a Ladies' Day at Soddy Church of Christ. The company, the singing and the speaker were all wonderful. I am never so at peace as I am after spending the day with my sisters in Christ.
I want to share with you, though, a little favor that the ladies of that congregation shared with the attendees. They have started a new project using Eternity Bracelets. These are the most ingenious little things! First, let me share some facts with you that were shared that morning. The average Christian has heard 4000 sermons, been led in 8000 prayers and many more songs, but do you know how many people the average Christian has brought to Christ? Zero. Isn't that terrible!? The fact is, the church is staying alive, not through new converts, but by generations raised in the church (not that that isn't a wonderful thing, training up our children is priority number one). Why is that? Well, one problem that the Soddy congregation sees is a lack of confidence that we have when it comes to sharing the Word and one solution to that problem is the Eternity Bracelet.




First, it gives you a conversation starter. Second, it comes with a little card with a poem describing what each bead represents. Let me paraphrase: (starting from the clear bead), first God made the world perfect and pristine, but then sin and darkness entered the world (black), the only salvation was the blood of Jesus Christ (red) which we reach through the water of baptism (blue) and spend our lives growing in His Word (green) until the day when we receive our golden crown in Heaven for eternity (gold). Everything you need to share the Word of God is right there on your wrist - a reminder of what to say and that we need to say it more often.
So here's the fun part. I have two to share. If you would like one, send an email to rubysisters@gmail.com. Include your name and mailing address. One week from today, I will choose two at random and will mail them out.
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