Failing

Craig Groeschel of lifechurch.tv wrote a book imaginatively called "It." Apparently it's now available on video, and there is a chunk of video on the blog, here.

I had my share of failures - well, maybe more than my share. If you didn't fail much, it may be because I used some of your share too. The last couple of years have been filled with a lot of failure and not a lot of success. So I could feel getting a bit more cautious and unsure of myself. I think I really needed to see this video. I like the quote, "For us failure is not an option - it's a necessity." I learned a lot from the attempt to plant Imagine!, and from the short time at United Faith in Pittsburgh. Imagine! failed miserably and United Faith didn't move forward much under my leadership. But these experiences taught me a lot about myself and about the kind of team and process required to successfully plant or restart a church in a culture that is radically different from my own. What I did NOT learn is that I should stop trying. Here I am, doing it all over again. I can't even imagine a life where I am not involved in a church and in bringing people to a close relationship with Christ.

So, anyway - there is an adventure ahead. A big, exciting, perilous adventure. Yeah, I might fail LOTS of times - no, scratch that, I will fail in very imaginative ways; but what's the use of trying something if you already know the outcome and every step on the way? the great thing about life with Christ is not that we are safe and secure in the knowledge that all is going to be OK; rather, it's the knowledge that the Lord is working in and through us in spite of all our mess-ups. It's the fact that we know it's all beyond our capabilities - it's a God thing; but the Lord is there to lead us and carry us through.

So, "It" is now on my wishlist. If you were wondering what to give me for my birthday - now you know.