Fear Failure?

Failure is one of those words that can make people cringe. Perhaps it's a task, assignment, job or something else that you fail at. Immediately you get pummeled with doubt, negative thoughts, lots of second guessing and even criticism from others. But when you really think about it, failure is one of the greatest learning tools we have to help us grow. I know this sounds crazy, but instead of fearing failure maybe you should embrace it, because depending on how you handle it, failure will push you on and stir you to move forward. When you fail at something how do you handle it? Do you want to quit? Do you feel inadequate? I love what John Maxwell says, "...wise leaders learn not to pin their self-worth on performance; rather they possess and internal self-image that's unaffected by outcomes. People with an unhealthy view of failure personalize it, seeing the failure as a reflection of their inadequacy." It's not a matter of whether or not you will fail at something, but more or less when you fail at something. When you do, use it as an opportunity to grow, learn and motivate you :) Proverbs 24:16 says, "The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again." Will you choose to get up again when you trip and stumble? Failure can be the beginning of success :)