Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, McAlester, OK
Feb. 23, 2012

“Failing Forward”
“…when you run, you will not stumble.” – Proverbs 4:12 (NIV)

It is almost impossible to read this verse and not be drawn to a similar one from the Prophet Isaiah:
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. – Isaiah 40:28-31

Something I have noticed in a number of people—they walk when they should be “running!” What I mean is they are afraid of “stepping up their game” (so-to-speak) when it comes to their faith. They could be doing far more than what they are doing and how they are living but are hesitant in doing so. Could it be they are afraid of failing? Could this be you? In his book, Failing Forward—Turning Mistakes into Stepping-Stones for Success (Thomas Nelson, 2000), Dr. John Maxwell reflects on his personal battle to overcome failure, describing his experience in terms that he called a recipe for disaster:

Fearing Failure…Misunderstanding Failure…Unprepared for Failure
But if you think that this was a formula for failure for Maxwell, you are wrong. Instead, for him (and for many others who have followed his example), coming to grip with failure is one of the most important keys to success in life. Maxwell quotes J. Wallace Hamilton as saying, “People are training for success when they should be training for failure. Failure is far more common than success; poverty is more prevalent than wealth; and disappointment more normal than arrival.”

Training for failure! What a novel concept. The fact is that failure can indeed become a stepping-stone for success. Mary Kay Ash is an excellent example of people who use their failure to propel them to success. She overcame significant obstacles in her life and career. Society tends to look at winners like Mary Kay and say, “I could have done that if I had as many things going for me as she had going for her.”
Society would have been wrong. After retiring early from a corporate management position, Mary Kay decided to launch a new company—her own line of cosmetics for woman. She purchased the formulas of an outstanding line of cosmetics, designed her own marketing plan, and proceeded toward incorporation. Her husband agreed to manage the administrative part of the business, while Mary Kay worked to prepare the product line, recruit and train sales people, and launch the advertising. She was off to a quick start, but a month before the target date to launch the business, her husband died suddenly of a heart attack.
Mary Kay was devastated. She considered quitting. But she didn’t. In 1963 she launched her business. By the year 2000, her company was grossing more than $1-billion in annual sales. In addition to her 3500 employees, her direct-sales consultants number about 500,000, and they are the ones that sell her products in 20 world area markets. Maxwell concludes, “Despite adverse circumstances, obstacles, and hardships, she failed forward.” The key for Mary Kay was failing forward, not backward.
Have you ever failed at something? Welcome to the universe. Everyone has. Do you consider yourself to be a failure? If so, allow the Lord to change that mindset. It is running and not allowing yourself to even think about falling! But if you do—you are certainly not out of the race. Get up, brush off, start running again!
Pastor J. T. Carnell