Redemption from Failure Part 2

Yesterday, I shared with you two reasons why we forfeit the work God longs to do in our heart when we fail. God’s desire is redemption. But so often we think we can redeem ourselves.

1. We hide our failures.

2. We aren’t sorry (to the point of change) for our failures.

God longs to redeem. He longs to make new. He is the God of second chances. While God longs to bring redemption about in our lives, we have a part to play in the redemption story of our life.

The first two mistakes we talked about had a lot to do with how we view failure and our perception of it. The final two things we are discussing have more to do with our view of ourselves after our failure has been exposed. Here are two things I’ve seen in my own life that prevent God from using our failures for His redemptive purposes:

3. Being paralyzed by the fear of failing again.

When we got out of ministry in 2005, I swore I would never go back. The pain of my failure was far reaching. I had destroyed my family. I had devastated another family. I had crushed an entire church. I had no desire to go back into ministry because I was so fearful that I would fail again. I can remember moving to Nashville with a sick feeling in my stomach as we reentered ministry. What if I can’t do this? What if I make more mistakes? Those two words, “What if” almost derailed God’s redemptive work in me. I was more concerned about “what if” than I was about “what God”. “What if “captured more of my attention than what God wanted to do in and through me. There is a time for confession. There is a time for remorse and repentance. But there is a part of our heart that is not redeemed when we give into the fear of failing. We rob God of the recreation He is doing in our heart.

4. Being unwilling to forgive yourself.

When we come to terms with our failure, there is no doubt that we understand how our failure hurt others. The lies that we told; the gossip we shared; the lust we tucked away; the person we used; the money we took…each of those choices cost someone other than us. Often what prevents us from experiencing the redemption that God longs to bring us isn’t the forgiveness we desire from God…or from the person/persons we hurt or offended. The forgiveness that we need most often to experience redemption is from ourselves. We fail to go through the process of forgiveness in our own heart. The result is that we walk around ashamed and defeated. Shame is the enemy of redemption. Shame robs you. Guilt tries to follow you. If you are going to experience the redemption that God has in mind for you, you have to forgive yourself.

You may be the biggest barrier to the new work God longs to you in you today.

Which of these two things cause you the most difficulty in your life?