Happiness is...Facing Down Failure: Chapter 41, Part I Even though good people may be bothered by trouble seven times, they are never defeated. –PROVERBS 42:16 NCV If you want to be happy, consistently happy, you must learn how to deal with failure. Why? Because all of us face setbacks from time to time—those occasional failures are simply the price we pay for being dues-paying members of the human race. Mary Pickford was “America’s sweetheart” in the early days of motion pictures. And along with Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks and D. W. Griffith, she formed United Artists Corporation, a Hollywood powerhouse. Miss Pickford had a simple yet powerful formula for success: She said, “This thing we call ‘failure’ is not falling down, but staying down.” She might as well have added that every time we get back up, we build character. Life’s occasional setbacks are simply the price that we must pay for our willingness to take risks as we follow our dreams. But even when we encounter bitter disappointments, we must never lose faith. Hebrews 10:36 advises, “Patient endurance is what you need now, so you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that He has promised” (NLT). These words remind us that when we persevere, we will eventually receive the rewards which God has promised us. What’s required is perseverance, not perfection. When we face hardships, God stands ready to protect us. Our responsibility, of course, is to ask Him for protection. When we call upon Him in heartfelt prayer, He will answer. In His own time and according to His own plan, He will do His part to heal us. We, of course, must do our part, too. And, while we are waiting for God’s plan to unfold and for His healing touch to restore us, we can be comforted in the knowledge that our Creator can overcome any obstacle, even when we cannot.
Posted on: Mon, 12 May 2014 15:31:15 +0000