Its new year, we may have started something and would have failed already or may have failed from past experience. What do we learn from these failures. A famous Quote by Nelson Mandela - "Do not judge me by my successes; judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.", These are common world known / world taught motivation items for our personal success.
But as children of God, as we walk closely with God, God teaches many lessons on Failure and how we should overcome them
Open Door vs Closed Door
Open Doors
Open Door - Many times when we pray for a particular thing or when we pray for a person’s salvation, we have our prayers answered by God, opening new doors and receive blessings for which we praise God.
Do not think that open doors will be free from problems either — 1 Corinthians 16:9 (NIV) 'because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me. '
Many time Open doors are measures of God’s testing to see whether we Glorify God or do we take credit for the Open door.
Closed Doors
Closed Door - Many times we are under the misunderstanding that God allows Open Doors and closed doors are due to the work of Satan. Revelation 3:7, gives the Biblical understanding, Revelation 3:7 (NIV) ' “To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. '
Open Doors God allows us to enter with he opening the Keys, in Closed door he keeps them shut with still the keys with him. Open or closed - Our Saviour has the keys to the Door thats the key to learn.
A classic example of how God alternates between “open” doors and “closed” doors for guidance Acts 16:6-10 (NIV) - 'Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. '
Asia (closed) --> Bithynia (closed) --> Troas --> ... Open door in Troas --> Macedonia
We read the result: Conversion of Lydia (Acts 16:14) / Conversion of Jailor (Acts 16:33,34)
Praise God for closed doors! If God does not close some doors for us, we will fall in for every open door— Several open doors may be traps for us!
Many times, it’s in “closed-door-situations” that God manifests his power in greater measure — Isaiah 45:1-2 (NIV) - '“This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut: I will go before you and will level the mountains ; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. '
When the situation is too ambiguous, there is nothing wrong in asking God to close doors which are not His will.
Failures for Children of God
When we have the faith in God and the Love given to us, we have the assurance that we are Children of God, 1 John 3:1 (NIV) 'See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. '
But as children of God we want only success and not failures and many times we fail to relate why we fail as Children of God. 1 John 3:9-10 (NIV) - 'No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister. '
Check to see which of your sins are preventing God to do his next steps, he will do “his will” only if you are aligned to his will. if you have to be his Child ,seed of God has to remain in you and you cannot go on sinning.
Sin prevents God from doing his perfect will in their life.
Common Mistakes that children of God do
We pray for a particular thing, because of a sin, our Saviour does not answer our prayer
We get disappointed we slow down our in prayer life. this gives a foot hold for Satan to take us to live a life of Self dependence.
We let go the Bible meditation, because we are weaken with our knowledge of God (Swords for Christian life), it gives room for Deception and slowly he takes over us with many deceptions to make you feel what you do is not wrong, the sins you commit is not a sin at all.
Christian life is a marathon - God asks us to walk - check every day if you are aligned to God and go further. Its not a sprint race..
God is always planning “best” for us, not “good”, the best for his blessing can happen with we aligning to his “Will” - if you see the Lord’s prayer Matt 6:9-13 (3 thing in the prayer is “your will be done on earth as its in heaven”)
Satan wants us to take what is “Not Good ~ Bad”, we are deceived every time in a failure
We just cannot understand God’s will if we depend on our substance or strength
Things to remember on our Failures
1. God does not get angry if you ask him to show why you failed, he is the world’s best teacher
He wants us to become pure like him 1 John 3:3 (NIV) - 'All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. ', so in that process he will show us the places which we lag to make us pure. Purity in us comes with one step of cleaning us, cleaning from our old habits and getting the new seeds that will prevent from doing the old way
When we repent to the old way the 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV) 'Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! '
2. God will wait till you get the things corrected, the sin that you may have or the addictions that you may carry
That’s why many prayer are delayed prayers and some prayers go unanswered as we have not corrected our stand / corrected our Sin. We have allowed ourself to overrule with God.
God will not force his will and override your self decisions. He expects us to yield to him to have him come and do his will.
3. God’s foot steps may not be known at times, but he still leads. this is the promise we have from him Isaiah 42:16 (NIV) - 'I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them. '
4. Our times are in God’s hands, so you can always say like David “You are my God”. Psalms 31:15-14 (NIV) - 'My times are in your hands; deliver me from the hands of my enemies, from those who pursue me. But I trust in you, Lord ; I say, “You are my God.” '
5. God only knows the end from the beginning. Very contrary from our human approach to start from beginning to end - Isaiah 46:10 (NIV) 'I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’ '
6. God reveals his will only in stages, because we cannot digest all he gives to us, its too tough for us to understand what he does in our life.They are too high to be understood. Isaiah 55:8-9 (NIV) '“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord . “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. '
7. God’s Spirit “guides” us—does not “control”us , he is gentle and does over power us - Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) 'But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. '
8. We expect instant answers, Our speed and God’s speed are different - We want instant answers, God works at his time - Abraham / Sarah -
God’s promise was to him the blessing for his generation, this promise was given to him when he had no children - Genesis 13:14-17 (NIV) 'The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.” '
God gave a son “Ishmael” thru Hagar (slave for Sarah) at 86. - Genesis 16:16 'Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.'
God reminded him of his promise when Abraham was 99 - Genesis 17:1-2 (NIV) - 'When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty ; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” '
God’s promise is fulfilled - Abraham was 100 / Sarah was 90 - Genesis 21:5 - 'Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. '
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