As we went along the gravel road behind the houses in our neighborhood ('hood if you're street) I noticed something. My son falls down. A lot! (And not because I pushed him. Come on people!) Whether it was a clump of grass or a rock or just himself, every so often, down he'd go!
But an interesting thing happened when he fell down: he got back up. He instinctively stood up and brushed off his hands and started walking again. It was as if he knew he was supposed to. With determination and resolve he stood up and started walking. If he had hurt himself I would have been right there to give him help but for the most part he did the recovering all by himself.
One thing I didn't do this morning on our walk: keep him from falling. I could have carried him the whole way. I could have carried him all his life. He would never have hurt himself. But also, he never would have learned to walk. Or even crawl. Falling is part of walking.
How well do you let your kids fall? How well do you fall? When you were young, you would get up when you fell every time, right? At what point in your life did you decide you weren't going to continue.
By now you probably know that I'm talking about your life. Have you not attempted something because you were afraid to fail? I have! A lot. And I regret not trying.
But, when I have tried something and it hasn't gone the way I had wanted I was disappointed, honestly, but I was glad I tried. Think about how much more pleased I was when I succeeded!
"We lose our way, we get back up again." -Toby Mac
Don't let the fear of failure keep you from living out the calling God has for you; or for your kids. We are going to fall! But we are going to succeed also. Take the chance. You don't know what will happen or who else will see your bravery and repeat it.
As always, I welcome your comments and success stories.
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