How God Can Use Our Failures, Part 3
“Then I let it all out; I said, ‘I'll make a clean breast of my failures to GOD.’ Suddenly the pressure was gone— my guilt dissolved, my sin disappeared.”
Psalm 32:5 (MSG)
So far, we’ve discovered two ways that God uses our failures for His purpose. The first was to realize that our failures are never final. God writes the final chapter in our lives, and we are not defined by our failures. The second was to remember the life-changing lessons we learn from failure. They humble us and press us into God’s grace and mercy, allowing God to do a deeper work in us so that He may accomplish a greater work through us!
Here's one final consideration for when we fail: Rest in God’s grace. It’s amazing to me that God chose us even though He knew we would fail. Jesus knew that Peter would deny Him and that Judas would betray Him. He knew that when the pressure was on, all His disciples would desert Him. Yet, that didn’t prevent Him from calling them and reaching back out to them with grace when they had fallen. His grace reaches out to you and me when we fail as well. His love for us is not based on our performance. Performance-based acceptance and love make it harder to accept God’s grace. The truth is there is nothing good you can do to make God love you more and nothing bad you can do to make Him love you less. God never gets tired of forgiving us. How often have you thought, “Oh, I can’t ask God to forgive me again for the same old sin.” Wrong! We need to take our sin to the cross every time we sin, even if it is the same sin over and over. Jesus told His disciples when they asked, “How many times must we forgive our brother? Seven times?” Jesus said we should forgive seventy times seven! The point was no sin is greater than His grace to forgive if we turn to Him with a humble heart. What does that mean? Here’s what it doesn’t mean:
Don’t beg. You don’t have to beg God to give you what Jesus died to offer!
Don’t bargain. You don’t have to make a deal to get God’s forgiveness.
Just believe! God wants us to have victory. We experience victory when we get honest with God and others. James tells us to confess our sins to God and our faults to one another. We confess our sins to God to be forgiven and our faults to one another so we can pray for one another that we may be healed.
Failure can leave us feeling defeated and deflated. Shame and guilt can overwhelm us. We need to rest in God’s grace and find healing. I love the part of the song, Mended, by Matthew West that says,
“When you see wounded, I see mended.
I see My child,
My beloved
The creation you’re becoming.
You see the scars from where you fell,
But I see the stories they will tell.
You see worthless, I see priceless.
You see pain, but I see purpose.
You see unworthy, undeserving,
But I see you through eyes of mercy.
When you see broken beyond repair
I see healing beyond belief.
When you see too far gone
I see one step away from home.
When you see nothing but damaged goods
I see something good in the making.
I’m not finished yet (no)
When you see wounded, I see mended.”
Isn’t it time to see failure through God’s eyes and experience His grace. You will fail, but learn to fail forward and you’ll be amazed at what God will do! Remember, you’re not defined by your failure – it’s not the final story! Learn from the life-changing lessons failure teaches you and rest in God’s grace!
Another important part of your daily devotional is spending time with God in prayer. The Woodlands Church Prayer Board lists prayer requests submitted by our members and provides a way to send them some encouragement by using a button on the page to let them know that you prayed for them. Whether you use the Prayer Board, or pray from your heart, the goal is to build the habit of incorporating prayer into your quiet time.
Need prayer yourself? Let us know by submitting a prayer request on the Woodlands Church Prayer Board.