U. S. Open – Success – Failure and Jesus Posted on June 24, 2015 by Eagle Rock Community Church U. S. Open – Success – Failure and Jesus. I want to talk today about handling success and failure. I know some people say there is never failure. If my goal is to win a game and I lose, is that not failure? What is it? A learning experience? I would rather confess that I failed to reach my goal and I can learn from my experience. After watching the last part of the final round of the U.S. Open golf championship, I began to reflect on success and failure. Jordan Spieth at the very young age of 21, won his first U.S. Open. He won the Master’s in April of this year and his two major victories has catapulted him to a very high level of success. Dustin Johnson missed a four foot putt to force a playoff and finished a disappointing second. One succeeded and another failed at their goal on Sunday. Personally, it gave me the opportunity to work on Monday. If Dustin makes his putt, I am glued to the tube to see who would win an 18 hole playoff! Back to the issue at hand. It is hard to imagine Jordan’s success at such a young age. How is he going to handle the media and the sponsors, who will be grabbing for his attention? How will Dustin Johnson handle his defeat? These are questions we all face in life. We have wins and losses on many levels. I think the real answer lies in our values and character development. With success, I need to have the humility in knowing that what I have to win has come from my Creator, my circle of influence and the hard work put in to do the job. With failure, I need to have the resolve to try again. I need to trust in my Creator, what I have learned from others and the commitment to work towards my goals. Failures can actually work out to be better than success! Failures face us with the tough questions about ourselves, our purpose and our future plans. A good example of this is the narratives in the Bible. It doesn’t hide the failures of some of the most prominent figures. It also demonstrates how God can work in failure to produce amazing results. This is why the Bible is a message of hope for all people. God takes our successes and our failures and shapes us into the people we were created to be! When we begin with worship, we will be able to handle success and failure! Value God, others and do the work in front of you and trust God for the results! Pastor Fred Connect with Me Subscribe to my mailing list * indicates required Email Address * First Name Last Name
