When You Fail, Try Again

"In the multitude of my anxieties within me, Your comforts delight my soul." Psalm 94:19 NKJV

Who sometimes takes life too seriously? I do.

And by that I mean that I sometimes, in the perfectionistic tendencies of my temperament, fail to be grateful in my day, laugh, and enjoy life when I see that I have again fallen short in some area of my life. The failure consumes my thoughts, and I become low and gloom. Thinking ahead, sometimes I don't know how to change that failure the next time around to a success, so I become lower and gloomier yet.

And in all my efforts to be the "perfect" person, I become so sour I'm no fun to be around or live with! How's that for "perfect"?

What happened this time? Right in the middle of wanting to hear my husband Ben's thoughts and how he felt on a topic, I misunderstood him, and instead of asking more questions to gain clarity, I was the poorest listener on the planet, and shut him right down with my own "special" thoughts on the topic. It is the lowest of lows to know you have done something to the person or people in your life that you love the very MOST. When I found out what I had done, I felt awful and apologized profusely.

But I couldn't just let it go, like my loving husband had! 

I continued to beat myself up over it until I was more miserable than I was to begin with. I felt so bad! How could I do that to the one I love? And I felt hopeless for the next time around, because I hadn't even noticed that I had shut him down. How would I improve the next time around if perhaps I again didn't notice what I was about to do to him?

In the course of time of which I begin to feel bad about anything and everything in life I have not done perfectly. Ugh! Are you as exhausted and tired of my crazy-making as I am? Or can you relate?

Seeing my gloomy countenance the next day, Ben asked me what was wrong. I told him why I felt so sad, having shut him down and unsure of how to be a better listener and communicator. He again lovingly assured me, "Hey, it's no big deal, ok? Really!" Can it really be no big deal?

Could I really receive and accept his forgiveness, love, and comfort?

Today's Fresh Brew: It's OK! Learn. Apologize. Move on. Try again! And LAUGH!

Then the Lord steps in to confirm the words my husband has spoken, this time speaking mostly through shared thoughts and articles from my friends pouring through my Facebook feed. Laugh together. Stop believing your bullshit. (Sorry, but the bluntness and shockingness of the word is what snapped me to!) Stop with the crazy making. Apologize. Learn from your mistakes and move on. 

And after all this, I stumbled upon the above picture on the Internet. I laughed so hard! I laughed and laughed and laughed some more--until I had tears pouring out my eyes, snot from nose, and drool from lips and I had to force myself to take a laughing break before I couldn't breathe! And then I laughed some more!

God is saying, LAUGH! Don't take life so seriously!! Just learn and move on! Try again! Receive and accept His forgiveness, love, and comfort.

"Do not take life TOO SERIOUSLY. You will never get out of it ALIVE." ~Elbert Hubbard
My husband Ben and I living it up and laughing together!

Do you know God loves you despite your failures and shortcomings? Do you know your loved ones love you despite your failures and shortcomings? Did you know Christ already paid for and wiped away that sin?

"The past should be our teacher, never our jailer. Yesterday ended last night, yielding to the gift called 'today.' Embrace its potential." ~Dutch Sheets 

It's OK! Learn. Apologize. Move on. Try again! And LAUGH!

More encouraging Scriptures to meditate on:

• "A merry heart does good, like medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones." Proverbs 17:22 NKJV

• "The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17 NKJV

• He does not delight in the strength of the horse; He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy. Psalm 147:10-11 NKJV

Tawny

Drinking a Freshly Brewed Cup of Mercy

"His mercies begin afresh each morning." Lamentations 3:23

I was chitchatting with my co-worker and good friend yesterday morning over the Internet. Each of us had just sat down at our respective computers in our home offices, preparing for work for the day, going over the day's tasks with each other. And while we were at it, we checked in with each other like good friends do.

"How are you?" she asked.

"Great!" I answered. "I just brought my breakfast and fresh coffee to the computer and cuddled up under a warm blanket... There's almost nothing better than a fresh, hot cup of coffee on a cold morning!" As I typed, I had the thought, "I should say, 'Almost nothing better,' because I'm sure there is something better..." (though I was pretty tickled with my cup of coffee!).

"Yes," she replied, "The joy of the morning with Jesus!"

Photo and spoon by jessicaNdesigns

There she had me pegged. I was humbled. That was what was better than just a fresh, hot cup of coffee. Jesus. I had just completed a few minutes of devotion with the Lord and had been greatly encouraged out of my discouraging discourse of failures that replayed over and over in my mind, but had gotten busy with the morning chores and nearly forgot to bring Him with me into the rest of my day.

Today's Fresh Brew: "Favor Like the Morning Dew"

I had stumbled upon that morning's devotional on Facebook as I groggily got ready for the day, by Joseph Prince. His post said, "God will never be angry or displeased with you because all His wrath against your sins has already fallen on Jesus at the cross! Check out today's devotional and be blessed!" How many of you can you relate to the feeling of God being angry, displeased, or disappointed with you?

I decided to click on it (read the devotional by Joseph Prince here) and was blessed by his simple and succinct message. God wasn't angry with me about my failures - I was! So I decided to trust the Lord that, as Joseph Prince said, "...right now, you are not under the King's wrath but His favor. And His favor rains down on you like dew on the grass every morning" (see Proverbs 19:12). It was a beautiful picture I could relate well to; these first fall mornings are covered with dew! And I have the Lord's favor like that! Why then am I rehearsing all my failures?

Photo by Barbara's HD Wallpapers; Scripture/text added by Tawny Nelson from the NLT Bible.

There truly is nothing better than having that cup of coffee with Jesus in the morning. Without Him, I could have gone on all day discouraged over my shortcomings... I need my mornings with Jesus even more than I need my morning cup of coffee! And despite any shortcoming or failure I may have had the day before, or even that morning, each morning His mercies are "freshly brewed and waiting for us to take and drink!" (quote by Garris Elkins).

May you and I take and enjoy each cup!

For more encouraging daily devotionals:

• Joseph Prince Ministries
• Garris Elkins

 Tawny