Failure Isn't Final
What God does with a bad outcome.
On starting again after something did not work.
The big idea
God has never once been limited by your worst result.
Opening scripture
“Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time.”
What does “Failure Isn't Final” walk through?
A Second Time
Jonah 3:1 · KJV
And the word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying,
In plain English
Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time.
Four Words That Change Everything
The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time. He had run, been swallowed, and thoroughly failed. The calling came back anyway.
Not Consumed
Lamentations 3:22 · KJV
It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
In plain English
Because of the Lord's mercies we are not consumed — his compassion never runs out.
New Every Morning
Lamentations 3:23 · KJV
They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
In plain English
They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.
“A setback becomes an ending only if you agree to it.”
Still Being Finished
Philippians 1:6 · KJV
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
In plain English
I am sure of this: the one who began a good work in you will carry it through to completion.
Rebuilding Is Ordinary
Almost everyone useful in scripture failed first, publicly. That is not the exception in the story. It is close to the pattern.
Pray
Father, thank you that you are a God of second times. Let me begin again. Amen.
Write it down
What failure have you been treating as the end of the story?
Begin again
Second times are God's specialty.
Which passages does this journey use?
4 passages, drawn from Jonah 3:1, Lamentations 3:22, Lamentations 3:23, Philippians 1:6. Every verse appears here in the King James text with a plain-English line beside it, so you can read it without a commentary open. Allow about 7 minutes for the whole thing, or 8 short sittings.
- Jonah 3:1
- Lamentations 3:22
- Lamentations 3:23
- Philippians 1:6
Read any of these in full on the complete KJV, or look the wording up independently at Blue Letter Bible.
More in Work, Ambition and Calling
All Work, Ambition and Calling →The Work In Front Of You
Ordinary effort, offered up.
When Results Feel Like Identity
You are not your score.
The Night Before Something Big
Prayer for the hours you cannot control.
Choosing What's Next
Guidance when there is no obvious answer.
Your First Job
Character when nobody is watching.
Working For An Audience Of One
When effort goes unnoticed.