Recently, a friend prayed for me: “God, let her learn what you’re teaching her through what she considers failure.”
“Failure” is a word I bump up against often. Too often for my poor, wounded pride. Although I’ve learned this lesson dozens of times, it still hasn’t traversed the head-to-heart channel.
I want to be the best. The best foreign Arabic speaker in North Africa. The English teacher that inspires others to change the world. In short, I want people to reflect on my life and call me accomplished.
That’s one of the reasons I’m here. Not because I’m excelling but because I’m not excelling. God set me up for what I consider failure. He sees that deep down in the dank crevices of my heart, I believe the lie that it’s about me and what I accomplish. So when I’m struggling to survive instead of excelling, I label it “failure” and try to soothe my pride in other ways.
But at the end of the day:
“It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.”
Ps. 119:71
Maybe this time the lesson will reach my heart.
My Thoughts From Afar | 