“Our failures don’t have to define us.”

A thought by Larry Osborne (2015-04-01) from his book, Thriving in Babylon: Why Hope, Humility, and Wisdom Matter in a Godless Culture (Kindle Locations 813-814). David C. Cook. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

Do you do that? It can be an easy thing to do but it can be something that holds us back from living the life God has for us. But you don’t know what I did? I don’t but God does.

I like how John Ortberg puts it in his book, Life-Changing Love: Moving God's Love from Your Head to Your Heart. He says, “God sees with utter clarity who we are. He is undeceived as to our warts and wickedness. But when God looks at us that is not all he sees. He also sees who we are intended to be, who we will one day become. We sometimes say love is blind, but it is not so. Love alone truly sees, sees with this double vision. And in the act of seeing, God begins to call to the surface the goodness and beauty in us that is now visible only to him, so that one day it will be visible to all. And that makes his heart glad.”

As Larry says, “Our failures don’t have to define us. It all depends on how we respond. If we curse our luck, blame others, and fail to take responsibility, we’ll continue to fail. But if we face the facts, accept responsibility, and humbly get back on the right path, our failures can lay the groundwork for future success… No matter what we’ve done or where we find ourselves— and no matter if our scars and failures have been self-inflicted or innocently obtained— he wants to turn us into trophy pieces, displaying the incredible depth and power of his immeasurable grace and mercy.” He wants us to become who we are intended to be.

And that is where the trust comes in. Not only in yourself but also in God and the circumstances that he may be taking you through. Life isn’t always fun. It can be miserable but it has a way of being used by a loving God to bring to the surface the goodness and beauty in you that may be only visible to him. He wants it to one day be visible to all.

Our failures don’t have to define us. It all depends on how we respond.

So what will be your response today?

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