How Do You Handle Failure?

How do you handle failure? Do you pick yourself back up and try again or do you let the failure hold you down? Failure is a part of life. When we look at failure from a heavenly perspective, we can see that we all “fall short of the glory of God.” Therefore, the question becomes despite my failure, am I still someone through whom God can use to accomplish his plan?

The story of Jacob in Genesis, chapter 34 and 35, illustrates great defeat and failure on behalf of Jacob and his family. Jacob’s daughter, Dinah, is raped by the son of the area ruler in the foreign land God has called Jacob to live in (defeat). Jacob’s sons are enraged at the act, and when the ruler and his son have the gall to come courting the daughter, the sons make it worse by trying to handle the situation on their own. Well, the ruler, his son, and the city call their bluff, and they have to hand Dinah over to the son to be his wife. Three days later, two of the sons take matters further into their own hands by using their swords to murder every one of the men in the city. The other brothers join in looting the entire city (failure).

Jacob was a man who was always trying to better his lot in life by deceiving other people to get what he wanted. His wives spent the majority of their lives competing over the affection of Jacob and committed many sins in the process. His sons had exercised poor judgment in the conversation with the ruler over Dinah and then allowed their rage at the situation to lead them to mass murder. As the head of the family, Jacob took full responsibility for the acts that were now threatening their existence. Jacob feared for his family’s safety knowing that when the surrounding towns heard about what these foreigners had done no one would allow them to live among them and they would be destroyed.

If you remember, Jacob is the grandson of Abraham, whom God promised to give this land to and to bless and make his descendents more numerous than the stars in the sky. Jacob was to be the line that through which this covenant would be fulfilled. Jacob’s family had just screwed up and it looked like their destruction was eminent. How would God accomplish His plan through these people now?

Well, God came to Jacob and instructed him to move his family to Bethel, the place where he first came to believe in God for himself. When Jacob was in Bethel over 20 years earlier, God had told him “I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” I believe God was trying to remind Jacob of two things. First, I loved you and called you while you were still a sinner and an unbeliever. Secondly, I have remained faithful to you despite all of your faults. Jacob faced a choice-let the failure keep him down or get back up and try again.

Jacob chose to try again and how he chose to try again is important too. He reminded his family to put God first again by instructing them to get rid of all the foreign gods they had in their possession. Secondly, he told them all to repent! Then, he asked them all to obey God’s instruction to leave for Bethel. During their journey, God had supernaturally made it impossible for the cities to harm Jacob’s family. When they arrived safely at Bethel, Jacob made an altar and gave thanks to God.

God knows we are going to fail but He calls us anyway. He can still work through us to accomplish His plan despite our sin as long as we keep getting back up and trying again. If Jacob would have let this hold him down and turned away from God in shame instead of repenting and restoring the relationship, the blessing of Israel may have ended there. However, he allowed himself to be restored to God so that God could continue to use him and bless him.

When we fail, Satan likes to swoop in and lie to you about how God couldn’t possibly want you now so that you will feel defeated and stay away from God in shame. Satan knows if you choose this route, he can temporarily thwart God’s plans. Don’t listen to the liar! Instead, go to God in repentance, put him back as the priority in your life, and let him continue to use you and bless you. Get up and try again. God is very powerful and will help you to overcome!

May God’s grace sustain and keep you!