Failure Turned Inside Out

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Failure Turned Inside Out
David, the psalmist, prayed: "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me."1
You sit with your head in your hands thinking you're a total failure. "I've blown it again," you mutter to yourself in despair. Hold it right there! Did you know that Walt Disney went broke seven times and had a nervous breakdown before he became successful?
And that Enrico Caruso failed so many times with his singing that his teacher advised him to quit. He didn't. His mother saw to that. And he became one of the world's greatest tenors. And Thomas Edison was called a dunce at school. Later, he failed more than six thousand times before perfecting the first electric light bulb.
Think, too, of King David in the Bible. He blew it big time. He not only committed adultery with Bathsheba and got her pregnant, but had her husband killed and took her as another wife. When he admitted his failure, God forgave him and gave him another chance. In fact, Bathsheba became the mother of King Solomon through whose line Jesus Christ came.
And remember Paul the apostle: he was so opposed to Christianity he was running around having Christians killed when God got a hold of him and turned his life around and used him in an incredible way.
God wants to turn our lives around too when we fail. So, if you feel like giving up, don't. Remember, failure is an event not a person. Now's the time to give God a chance. It starts with being honest with yourself, with a trusted friend, and with God-admitting how and where you've failed and asking God to forgive you and to help you.
For real encouragement, read all of Psalm 51. And listen to these words also written by David: "There was a time when I wouldn't admit what a sinner I was. But my dishonesty made me miserable and filled my days with frustration. All day and all night your hand was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water on a sunny day until I finally admitted all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide them. I said to myself, 'I will confess them to the Lord.' and you forgave me! All my guilt is gone."2
What a gracious, loving, forgiving God we have.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please be merciful to me, a sinner. I confess all my sins (name the ones you've never confessed before) to you. Have mercy on me and forgive me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen." 1. Psalm 51:10. 2. Psalm 32:3-5, (TLB). --Daily Encounter