Fearing Failure

Have you ever been on a Rip Cord? It's a HUGE swing-type thing where they pull you up really high (over 180 feet), then you "free-fall" down and swing out over all the people. I've always wanted to jump out of an airplane and I figured this was the closest I'd ever get, so I was anxious to try!

The first time I ever did it, I was with my friends Rick and Jodi. All three of us went together and they pulled us higher and higher and higher. All the people below were getting so small, I thought surely we were close to the top so I turned and looked... we were only HALF WAY!!! When we got to the top, they quickly counted backwards... 5, 4, 3, 2, 1... PULL! And you're supposed to pull the cord out so you fall! Pull the cord so you FALL... it even sounds wrong to say it. Thank God I was not on the side where you have to pull the cord because if I was, you would not be reading this post. I would still be up there.

It turns out it was the biggest rush of my life! I absolutely loved it. I kept my eyes open all the way down so I could see what it would look like to jump out of a plane. But I just don't think I could have pulled the cord that took us from that place of safety to the place of plummeting toward the earth. There were just too many things that could go wrong. I know it makes absolutely no sense. I wanted to do it. I was EXCITED to do it. It would seem I'd be anxious to pull the cord that would get it all rolling. But being excited about where I wanted to be and taking action to get there were like polar opposites for me.

I've been thinking A LOT lately about taking more control over where I let my thoughts dwell. As you may have read in an earlier post, it started with thinking about young couples and how they need to choose to focus on the positive things they see in their spouses. I then began thinking about choosing to be content with what you have. But as of a couple of nights ago, it's taken a whole new angle.

I was walking the boys (dogs) with Leonard and we began talking about the areas where we let our thoughts dwell on the wrong things. By far, the biggest one for me ... even now at the ripe old age of 46 ... is fear of failure. I mostly see it in my work--I fear the numbers not being high enough, I fear letting down my clients, I fear not being good enough at what I do. And if that's where I let my focus dwell, my emotions very quickly follow. I begin to feel paralyzed... afraid to do or try anything. It really becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. You think you'll fail. You fear even trying, so you don't. You fail.

But suddenly I realized I can change all of that, too, just by changing where I let my thoughts dwell.

I am a child of God. I can't fail. That's a fact. No matter what the circumstances of life bring--all the ups and the downs-- ultimately I just CAN NOT fail. I am in God's hands, and He doesn't fail. Even thinking about it begins to give me a feeling of empowerment! And when I change where my thoughts are dwelling, everything else begins to change with it. Obviously, my emotions begin to change. Instead of fear, I begin to feel a sense of adventure! When failing is out of the picture, there are suddenly all kinds of things I want to try! And if something doesn't go well, it doesn't really matter. I can't fail! In the whole big scheme of things, I just can't fail! Failure is bigger than something going wrong. Some things will work out and some things won't. That's just the nature of life. But I can't and I won't fail. What a freeing concept!

Now, this is not some plug for "positive thinking". But it is a plug for thinking about what is TRUE. I once heard someone say, "It's not what's true that affects your life, it's what you believe." That pretty much hits the nail right on the head. God loves you and cares about every detail of your life. It's the truth. But if you don't really believe it, it's not going to have much impact. You were created uniquely with special gifts and talents that equip you to impact people all around you as no one else can. It's the truth. But you have to believe it.

You're a child of the Most High God, King of the Universe. You have been set free by His love, His sacrifice. You cannot fail, because He cannot fail. You are free to try any adventure on this earth you want to try! Your life is in the hands of the one who does not fail! Failure is not even a possibility.

Can you believe it? Can you really believe it? 5-4-3-2-1.... Pull the cord!