There is a word we don’t like to dwell on that much…
This word can be painful, depressing, hurtful, & frustrating…as a matter of fact most of us will do all within our power to avoid this word…or its meaning…the word?
Failure…what do you do to avoid it?
Have you noticed in yourself a pattern of behavior you do over & over, subconsciously expecting different results?
Have you ever said "It will be different this time…if I just try harder…things will change if I just do it this way one more time"…only to have failure…again?
In my short life I have heard people say (because of repeated failures) "I just want to die…I don’t want to live any more…it would all stop if I were dead"…in my observation of these people I see the same pattern of thinking over & over with the same failing results…they begin to think death of themselves is the only solution…can you relate?
This may surprise you but they are right…death is the solution….
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 NIV
A guy named Paul wrote these words…sounds like life for him is tough, difficult, not easy…but he’s not destroyed…not dead…if you described your life like him…death might be nice…just to be done with it all…by his next words he would agree…
We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 2 Corinthians 4:10 NIV
What do you "carry" each day…do you carry failure?
If you carry around "in your body" the burden of "I’m a failure"… your body will look like somebody carrying a load of failure…heavy, burdened, pained, stooped shoulders…lifeless?
What if you replaced your repeated patterns of thinking (that always end in failure) with one thought…Jesus died for me?
What would your life look like? Paul said "life... [will] be revealed in our body"
Life offers life & death…you have no choice when you get life or when you die…your only choice in life is to choose how you live while alive…we can live it how we want to which leads to feeling like a failure or live it how the Creator of life wants you too…so, those of us alive (please note: if you’re reading this you are alive) how do we get life into life again?
For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body 2 Corinthians 4:11 NIV
Paul says he learned he had to be willing to be "given over to death"…meaning he had to be willing to let die his thoughts, his behaviors, his attitude, his way of doing things …he let them die to give honor to Jesus for dying for him…the result?
"His life may be revealed in our [physical] body"
Just a thought…if you let Jesus be revealed in your life…your body…is it possible to be labeled a failure in the eyes of the Creator?
There are 1440 minutes in a day…WALK1440 dying to self to live for Jesus
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