Walking the LineSample

You build on failure. You use it as a stepping-stone. Close the door on the past. You don’t try to forget the mistakes, but you don’t dwell on them. You don’t let them have any of your energy or any of your time or any of your space. —Johnny Cash

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love. —Romans 5:3–5 NLT

Unsurprisingly, an artist who took the kind of chances in his work that Johnny Cash took—and who struggled with the kind of temptations that he struggled with—would develop an insightful, lived-in perspective on failure. Yet Johnny Cash’s life was one of forward momentum. He refused to allow his failures to define him or stop him. If we’re going to learn from his example, we need to do four things when we fail.

First, we need to own our failure. It’s tempting to make excuses or blame someone else, but if we’re going to learn everything God has to teach us, we need to be honest with Him and with ourselves. We need to be able to admit, “This is on me. I did something wrong.” This is especially important if our failure affects our relationship with God. We need to confess what we’ve done and ask for His forgiveness. The same goes for failures that affect other people. We must take full responsibility and take the necessary steps to restore our relationship.

Second, we need to understand our failure. We do that by asking God to help us recognize decisions along the way that might have led to it. We need to answer some difficult questions honestly. Were we trying to do too much? Did we ignore any warning signs? Did we put ourselves in the wrong place at the wrong time? Were we influenced by someone else? Were we too susceptible to temptation? The point here is not to dwell on or obsess over our failure but to learn what we can from it to keep from making the same mistake again.

Third, we need to put our failure in perspective. We need to recognize that our failure does not define us. Many heroes of the faith failed miserably at some point in their lives. Moses killed a man. Peter denied knowing Jesus on three separate occasions. Paul helped persecute Christians. Yet all were later used by God in powerful ways. We can find inspiration in their stories and motivation to learn from them and then move past our failures to find what God has in store for us.

Fourth, we need to grow from our failure. One thing failure can do is make us empathetic to other people who have failed or who are struggling. We can become instruments of God’s grace in their lives. We can help them learn to forgive themselves and regain their momentum. We can turn our own failure into something positive for others.

Heavenly Father, thank You for refusing to give up on me, no matter how many times I fail. Thank You for the opportunity to learn and grow from my failures. Help me keep a healthy perspective on the times I fall short so that I can restore my relationship with You, others, and myself. In Jesus’ name. Amen.