Wellbeing: An Invitation to a Flourishing LifeSample

Growing not Failing

I remember one time as a child, after losing a game of Monopoly, I ran out of the room, hid under a table, and cried. Eventually, after my brother won too many times, we decided it best for our family to stop playing Monopoly. No one likes losing. No one likes failing. Every time we fail, it feels like a judgment on our worth or value as a person, which can really hurt. Recent culture has seen many parents, teachers, and coaches try to avoid this feeling for children by trying to make sure that no one fails and no one wins or loses.

Unfortunately, this doesn't really address the problem, it just avoids the problem. This is fine during childhood, but our mistakes have consequences when it comes to adult life. We compete for and lose things all the time, job opportunities, houses, and romantic relationships, to name a few.

It’s easy to compare our lives to those around us and feel like we're failing in some area. We focus on all the things we get wrong, the standards we haven’t lived up to, or the moments we just want to re-live. In the book of Philippians, Paul has a different perspective. He says, “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion.” He says we are not failures, we are works in progress.

I’ve made so many mistakes in my life. I have so many moments I’d love to re-live and do better, I’m sure you do too, but these mistakes don’t define us. They are opportunities to grow. A failure mindset is hopeless, it is filled with condemnation, and it looks to the future it is filled with pressure and stress. A growth mindset is filled with hope, it looks for opportunities to learn, and the future is filled with excitement. Knowing that God is working on us and that He will bring that work to completion helps me to see myself as growing rather than failing. It has made me willing to try more things, take more risks, and live more confidently. A growth mindset is a huge step toward well-being.

Thought Point: When you make mistakes, do you condemn yourself or focus on how you can grow? How might embracing a growth mindset help your outlook on life?

Prayer Point: Thank God for the work He has begun in your life. Ask Him to help you to continue to press on toward the completion of that work.