Success and Failure Blog

“So he called him in and asked him, What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.”        (Luke 16:2).

The character and actions of a godly steward stand in stark contrast to that of the unjust steward.  ( See also Luke 16:10-13 )

All good stewards do the following:

Are you that faithful and wise servant being described here in Luke 12:42-43 ?

“The Lord answered, Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns.”

Don’t let anyone convince you that you can’t do what God expects of you.  A steward has authentic responsiblility and carries it out faithfully.  By God’s grace, you can do what He has planned for you.

** comments on stewardship taken from the Word for You Today (Sep/Oct/Nov 2009)

God did not make you to be average! Everything you need to succeed already exists in you.  Believe in God’s word and receive the blessings that God is offering to you.  As a matter of fact, God has already bestowed these gifts on every person that is united with Christ…

Ephesians 1:3 NIV Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

Ephesians 1:4-14 goes on to explain what some of those spiritual gifts are. Our relationship with God, as His children, is the biggest and most important of the blessings.  In addition, God has a plan for our lives, and because we are His “heirs,” we are guaranteed a future inheritance. The moment we trusted Christ we inherited a great deal of spiritual riches and blessings, all of which were purchased for us by Christ.

God has endowed us with the Holy Spirit, who takes up residence in our hearts and gives us experiential glimpses of God’s kingdom. The Holy Spirit enables us to experience God’s love in this life (Rom.5:5)  The Holy Spirit also enables us to build and enjoy healthy love relationships in this life (1Thess.4:9). But sometimes we can forget that we have the rights of sons and daughters and instead live as orphans. We have incredible riches in Christ, but we often act like we’re poor. We Christians know that the ultimate purpose and meaning of our lives is to bring praise and glory to God.

What might look different in your life if you were living out of a rich experience of our spiritual adoption in Christ?

Take a look at Romans 8:15-17: For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

How does being made sons and daughters free us from fear?

So it is up to us as Christians to act on what we already possess.  We should believe, live and act as though we are blessed, because we really already are!  As Tye Tribbett would say, “We’ve got the V ICTORY!” and we should live our lives for the glory of God.

Click here to see the video of Tye Tribbett on tbn

John 4:23 NIV Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.

To summarize, these verses should lead us to:

• Understand that the chief purpose for God’s blessing us is to bring glory to Himself by making us holy and blameless in love.
• Praise and thank God as we meditate on our many spiritual blessings.
• Live in such a way as to bring God the greatest glory possible
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“Hold your head high, stick your chest out. You can make it. It gets dark sometimes but morning comes. Keep hope alive. Don’t you surrender!  Suffering breeds faith. In the end faith will not disappoint.”   –Jesse Jackson, American civil rights activist,minister

As you read the quote by Rev. Jesse Jackson keep these verses in mind from James 1:2-4,  “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

Let us take care, in times of trial, that patience, and not passion, is set to work in us: whatever is said or done, let patience have the saying and doing of it. When the work of patience is complete, it will furnish all that is necessary for our Christian race and warfare. We should not pray so much for the removal of affliction, as for wisdom to make a right use of it. Here is something in answer to every discouraging turn of the mind, when we go to God under a sense of our own weakness and folly. If, after all, any should say, This may be the case with some, but I fear I shall not succeed, the promise is, To any that asketh, it shall be given. No condition of life is such as to hinder rejoicing in God.

(bible verse notes taken from Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Bible).

The following is a poem that I came across many years ago. Its seems just as appropriate today as it did back then. See if you remember hearing it, as well.

Don’t Quit by Edgar A. Lewis

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don’t you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow–
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor’s cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out–
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit–
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.

More bible commentary on James Chapter 1 can be found at Matthew Henry’s Commentary

Most people you know would not come right out and say that they are planning to fail in all they do today, but according to the old proverb, “He who fails to plan, plans to fail.” How many of us actually have a plan for our spiritual lives today? If you are serious about your future, you should have a plan which includes a personal mission statement. It can even be written in the form of a letter to God, if you prefer. Your personal mission statement may include any or all of the following items:

– a declaration of your goals and objectives for your life

– a vision of what you would like to be doing in the future

– a statement of who you would like to become.

Dr. Suzan Johnson Cook gives these pointers for shaping your mission statement in her book,  Live Like You’re Blessed,

1. Make it holy; use the letters in BLESSED to remind yourself what you want your life to contain B-balance L-love E-energy S-spirit S-success E-encouragement and D-devotion to the Lord

2. Stress the positive; note what you desire in an affirmative manner and don’t dwell on the negative experiences in your life

3. Recognize your gifts and how you can use them to accomplish your mission

4. Give yourself a reasonable time limit; 2 to 5 years is acceptable

5. Use inspirational quotes to remind yourself of who you want to become.

As you work on your mission statement keep these words in mind from Jemiah 29:11 (NIV)

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

“The line between failure and success is so fine that we scarcely know when we pass it: so fine that we are often on the line and do not know it.”  –Elbert Hubbard, American writer

Failure is not always a bad or a negative experience.  Some people use failure as an excuse to stop striving for what they really want or need.  The Bible says in Proverbs 24:16,  “for though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again…” According to Charles C. Manz, in his book, The Power of Failure: 27 Ways to Turn Life’s Setbacks into Success, “Sometimes failure is failure, at least in the short run.  If we can learn to accept failure as a necessary part of life and then take from it the valuable lessons it offers, we can transcend it.  Sometimes it’s best to not try to deny or redefine failure but to effectively cope and cooperate with it for future success.”

We may experience setbacks in life, but if we continue to rise again, the very next time may be the push we need to make it to our reward.  As Donnie McClurkin says in his popular gospel song, “We fall down, but we get up…”  The only way to accomplish what God is calling you to do is to have faith that God will be with you through it all.  “for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” (Philippians 2:13)  As long as we are obedient, God will even supply the faith, “… think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.” (Romans 12:3)

“Most people search high and wide for the key to success. If they only knew, the key to their dreams lies within.”  – George Washington Carver. American inventor

Do you believe that people can’t be successful and spiritual at the same time?  Speaking as one who grew up in the church, we were often taught that we should equate humility with poverty.  We were also led to assume that successful people could not be humble.  That  was certainly misleading!

2 Chronicles 26 relates the story of King Uzziah, stating in the 4th and 5th verses, “And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah did. And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God: and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him to prosper.”

As long as Uzziah sought the Lord, and minded religion, God made him to prosper.  Those only prosper whom God makes to prosper; for prosperity is His gift.  Many have owned, that as long as they sought the Lord, and kept close to their duty, they prospered; but when they forsook God, every thing went cross.  God never continues either to bless the indolent or to withhold his blessing from the diligent.  He will never suffer any to seek his face in vain (bible verse notes taken from Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible).

When successful people speak, others tend to listen.   If you have a story of Christian success,  do you share it with others?  Your positive message may be just what someone else needs to hear (or read) to jumpstart their own journey to success!!

More bible commentary on King Uzziah can be found at  BibleGateway

“Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.”

– Winston Churchill

Churchill certainly had the right attitude.  Take a look at  Isaiah 40:31, which reminds us that as Christians, we should continue to trust in the Lord even when times get tough, “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.”  I believe that God has made me strong again and given me a desire to reach out to others in their troubled times.  Knowing that God would never betray me is my source of strength.  We know that no one will ever have a problem-free life, but faith in God and faith in our worth as beloved children of God will give us the hope and encouragement we need to remain strong and to witness to others for Christ.

I close today with these words from the founding pastor of the  Crystal Catherdral:

“Commit yourself to a dream… Nobody who tries to do something great but fails is a total failure. Why? Because he can always rest assured that he succeeded in life’s most important battle — he defeated the fear of trying.”

– Dr. Robert H. Schuller

Are you doing what you need to do to live the life that God has planned for you? Discipline is the key to releasing the power of God in your life. Discipline is defined as training that corrects, molds, or perfects mental faculties or moral character. It is the foundation for your success, and without it you won’t get very far. According to personal and business success mentor Brian Tracy, “… (I am talking about) the quality of self-discipline. It is a habit, a practice, a philosophy and a way of living. All successful men and women are highly disciplined in the important work that they do. All unsuccessful men and women are undisciplined and unable to control their behaviors and their appetites. And when you develop the same levels of high, personal discipline possessed by the most successful people in our society, you will very soon begin to achieve the same results that they do.”

Do you remember this old saying from the 1980′s?  I was reminded of this saying recently as I surfed the internet. According to khoff from englishforums.com, “There is an ironic saying ‘whoever dies with the most toys, wins’ — meaning that our materialistic society makes it seem as though the whole goal of life is to accumulate things. ” I thought this was an excellent explanation. Do you, as well, spend more time taking care of your possessions than you spend with God? Whether you are rich or poor, believing that God can and will meet your needs and show you the way is the key to living a life with meaning and purpose.  We can’t straddle the fence. We either live by God’s values or the values of the world!

We should keep our hope and faith in God and not our worldly possessions. In Luke 18:22 Jesus used the situation with the young ruler to point out that those who are not burdened by possessions find it easier to gain life and peace by following Him. In God’s kingdom, everything we have is a gift.  Instead of looking for ways to gain more possessions we should be led by love to share what we have so that everyone’s needs are met. What gifts or talents has God given to you? When was the last time you used those gifts to offer something to someone else?

It is not difficult to see these days how the world measures overall success. Fancy cars, large houses, piles of money and loud splashy jewelry proclaim success for many people in this country. Teenagers and twenty-somethings watch video after video on MTV, VH1, and BET to see which rapper, R&B singer, or rock star has the latest “bling” (jewel encrested necklaces, bracelets, or earrings), the longest limo, the biggest SUV, and the most “benjamins” ($100 bills) falling from their pockets. But how do we as Christians measure our achievements and obtain personal success? In the world, personal achievement is the way to the top, but in God’s Kingdom, true greatness is not measured by what we own or how well we perform.

Christ tells us that desiring to freely serve Him and rendering assistance to others is how we honor our debt to Him (see Matthew 9:35). Jesus left the glories of heaven and came to earth to minister and give His life for our salvation (see Mark 10:45). So we must identify with Jesus Christ in His service and suffering. He sets the example of true servanthood. Jesus teaches in Matthew 25:35 that feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, clothing the naked, and visiting the sick or imprisoned are the same as serving Him. True ministry is an act of service to God that seeks to give to others without expecting earthly rewards in return.

Are you trying to find your personal ministry in God? Try this little exercise:

1. Make a list of all the possible ways that you can serve in your local church.

2. Make a 2nd list of all the ways you can be a servant in your local community.

3. Pick at least one item from each list and carry it out this week.

Post a comment and let us know how you did with this exercise.

Booker T. Washington has left us the following words to consider.  “I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.”  As Christians in a material world we often forget that our success is not measured by the wealth we obtain or how important our job title is.  Many people waste their lives chasing worldly success and public acknowledgment. Matthew lets us know that these accolades are only temporary (Matthew 6:19).  It is not your possessions or your “public profile” that defines who you are, it’s what you give during your lifetime. 

As practicing Christians we must give our lives to Christ, our best effort to the Gospel, and our hearts to heaven.  If we do this everything else will fall into place.  As it says in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” True Christianity is not concerned with what one may be able to gain, but how much one is able to sacrifice. In the long run, if we shamefully deny Christ to gain the pleasures of this sinful world, then He will reject us as well to his Father in heaven. (Matthew 10:33)