What do you do when you fail — when you sin — as a child of
God? Here are four precepts straight from God's Word that will give you
understanding for your particular situation.
First, remember what Jeremiah wrote of Israel after her
greatest failure and judgment — a judgment that led to the destruction of her
temple and her holy city:
Remember my affliction and my wandering, the wormwood and
bitterness. Surely my soul remembers and is bowed down within me. This I recall
to my mind, therefore I have hope. The LORD'S lovingkindnesses indeed never
cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is
Your faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion," says my soul,
"therefore I have hope in Him."(Lamentations 3:19-24) There is hope
because God is God.
Second, recognize that God did not restrain you from failing
either because you deserved to fail since you did not choose to obey Him, or
because He wanted to teach you something, to cleanse you, make you more like
Him. It is part of the discipline, the "child-training" of those who
belong to the Lord. (Hebrews 12:11-13)
Third, if it is moral failure, do as David did in Psalm 51.
Throw yourself on God's mercy, on God's grace. Cry...
Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness;
according to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.
(verse 1)
Say...Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a
steadfast spirit within me.... Restore to me the joy of your salvation and
sustain me with a willing spirit. (v. 10 and 12)
And from verse 13, know there is still a future for you (if
not, He would simply take you home!).
Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will
be converted to You.
And finally remember...
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a
contrite heart, O God. You will not despise. (v. 17)
Fourth, like the Apostle Paul who realized that he had not
attained (he had not hit that measure of perfection), you need to say with him,
...forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what
lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God
in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:13-14)
Those who keep looking back at their failures will never win
the race set before them. We can evaluate where and how we failed for the
purpose of learning and growing; however, the past is never to be our focus. If
it is, it will cripple our future. As we look at failure, we need to understand
why we fail and when we fail.
We fail when we try to do something we are not capable of
doing, not gifted in or talented in. Therefore, it is important, as Romans 12:3
tells us, not to think more highly of ourselves than we should think. We need
to take an honest and objective look at ourselves and recognize our
limitations.
We also fail when we try to do it "our way," when
we don't follow and live by God's precepts, His commandments, or when we think
we are smarter than God, or don't need to involve God...this time. Multitudes
are failing in their family lives, relationships, parenting, ministry and even
in providing for their loved ones because they haven't studied God's textbook
for life. Thus they do not know God or His ways. The will of God is discerned
by knowing the Word of God (Romans 12:1-2). We need to put ourselves on the altar
and tell God He can direct us any way He desires. The steps of a righteous man
are ordered by the Lord.
And closely connected to that point — we fail when we walk
in presumption. Like the children of Israel in Numbers 14, some think all that
is necessary is to confess that they have failed and then they can have it the
way it would have been had they not sinned. When you choose to cheat, realize
that you will eventually get caught — " ...be sure your sin will find you
out" (Numbers 32:23).
So having said all this, what do you do when you fail?
1. Run to God and ask Him why, if you do not know.
2. If God shows you that you failed because you erred or
sinned, confess your sin or your failure. Name it for what it is. Then make it
right with God and with man, if necessary. It helps to clear the air.
3. Throw yourself on God's mercy. Ask His counsel.
4. Remember the character of God. Remember His promises —
cling to them. You have His promise if you cling. Psalm 119:31 says "I
cling to your testimonies; O Lord do not put me to shame." The secret to
recovering from failure is to continue to cling to your God. We are here to
teach you to cling to Him...and not let go. I urge you to go deeper into His
Word during remaining months in this year. Number your days, discipline yourself to be a man or a woman of
the Lord. When the test, the trial or the temptation comes, you can overcome.
"...This is the victory that has overcome the world-our faith" (1
John 5:4).
