A failure can become a stepping stone to success.
Chucks Swindoll
“The first fact about failure is that failure is a fact. And though we can seek to minimize our mistakes and failures, the issue is not how to keep from failing, but how to survive and recover from failure.”
Six simple strategies to help you learn from mistakes and use the experience to set yourself back on the path to success.
1. Accept that failure is part of life.
2. Realize it’s OK to get upset.
3. Reflect on the lessons.
4. Own your mistake.
5. Redefine what failure means to you.
6. Take action and move on.
Our Study
An incident from Peter’s life illustrate this wonderful truth. In Luke 5:1-11, we find that despite a whole night of fishing, Peter and his friends hadn’t caught any fish. They were not novices but professional fishermen. Peter would have had a good boat and the best nets. He knew exactly where to catch the most fish. He had worked all night. The lives of his family depended on a good catch. But this morning, Peter had come ashore empty handed. But what we find in this incident is a wonderful truth: A failure can become a stepping stone.
After addressing the crowd on the shore, Jesus said to the disciples, "Now let's go fishing. Launch out into the deep water and let down the nets for a catch." But Peter replied, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. Yet if you say so, I'll let down the nets." When the disciples obeyed, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. This incident teaches us what to do when our best is not good enough.
1. Fit God’s Presence in your Life (Luke 5:3)
“He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.” (Luke 5:3)
The clue to the first principle of success is found in Luke 5:3. Jesus was in the boat with the disciples. Christ's presence made a big difference! This time the disciples weren't fishing by themselves; God was with them. The first principle for successful living is, if you want success in life, you’ve got to have Jesus in your boat.
2. Cooperate with God’s Plan for Your Life (Luke 5:4
“When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”
The second principle is you must cooperate with God’s plan in your life. The second time the disciples went fishing, they fished under the direction of Christ. While they may have had more experience at fishing, they obeyed the instructions of the one who had created the fish. In order to experience God’s blessing, we must not only fit God’s presence in our lives, but also cooperate with God’s plan for our lives.
3. Expect God to Act (Luke 5:5)
5 Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets."
The third principle is you must trust God’s promises in your life. Peter demonstrated this in verse 5 when he said, "Because you say so." In the second fishing attempt the disciples acted on the basis of God's promise to them. They went fishing again because they believed God would provide the fish.
The people who succeed are those who keep on going after they’ve fallen. They learn from those failures. A righteous man falls, but he rises up again. Successful people simply get up again and keep going.
You’re never be a failure until you quit and give up. We have nothing to prove to God anyway and He is the one we are serving so learn to deal with failure with His grace.
Group Discussion
1. What is your usual reaction to failure?
2. How have you let your failures keep you from doing what God has called you to do?
3. Have you ever experienced something so overwhelming that you were convinced you could not continue on God’s path?
4. Do you know what it feels like to experience what you perceive as “failure”?
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