FAILURE, HAS PROMPTED ME TO THANK THE LORD. BY PASTOR CLIFFORD SIBANDA
The Lord is great. He achieves the best even in our
limitations. Hindsight has prompted me to thank the Lord for
failure. I hate failing. But my sojourn with failure is long. I
am even failing to recollect its beginning. The earliest I
remember is in 1979 at Lower Gwelo primary school when I was in
grade one. I was position 47 in a class of 48. The one who was
number forty eight had not completed writing his tests. I could
not even read the report. Others had to tell me the details of
my deplorable report. Yet, it is from this failure that I
really bonded with my mother. She would sit up with me till
eleven at night helping me with my school work. At the age of
seven years!! She taught me Bible stories which significantly
contributed towards determining my choices in life. If I had not
failed, I would have missed this valuable experience.
I failed my driving competency tests sixteen times. It was during the seventeenth attempt in Plumtree when I finally got the license. Failing to get a license is very humbling, frustrating, humiliating and even annoying. Yet, the Lord taught me valuable lessons about driving from these failures. The Lord used this to stress caution on the highway. The failure has taught me to drive carefully. If my license is canceled, it cannot be easy to go back for another competency exam.
I have flopped in my preaching. The worst was in Sipepa, Tsholotsho in 1997. I had earlier visited the place to preach at a camp meeting and I received a follow up invitation to preach during a guest day. To me, it was a confirmation of the impact of my preaching. The oral and flattering feedback to my preaching was still fresh in my mind. I was ready to show the church that this was not just a bluff. I never prayed much in preparation for the guest day. Not because I did not believe in prayer but I never felt helpless and feeble.
There was not much sense of desperation in me to impress upon my mind the urgency need of Divine power. The sermon was long. Over an hour. I had not planned to preach for an hour but the the dearth of exuberant feedback made me to tarry longer in anticipation of that climactic moment. It never came. The climactic moment actually came in the afternoon when Spirit moved brother without any Theological training spoke for five minutes. The church wondered where such a man was in the morning. If I had not failed, I would not have known that God's work is not dependent upon our reputation. Each day needs a new commitment to Him.
I recently failed a Hebrew challenge exam. Challenging the exam would have helped me avoid taking a Hebrew class. Failure just deflates our ego. If I had not failed, I would have missed the opportunity of sitting at the feet of Correa, great Old Testament scholar. He teaches Hebrew painfully. The long and tedious way. He also gives impromptu oral quizzes. He simply greets you in Hebrew, if you fail to respond, you have failed the quiz. Or he asks you what you are doing at school. He just made everyone unsettled and committed to learn Hebrew. Reciting the Shema in Hebrew was just something else. Shema Yisraeli, Adonai Elohenu, Adonai ehad,...
If I had not failed, I would have missed the long route. Shortcuts at times deny us the great opportunities to learn valuable issues in life
I hate failure. Am not planning for it. But if it revisits me (which I fear it do), I have to remember that He is not done with me yet. He still directs our paths even in rugged roads.
Paul could testify in 2 Corinthians 12:9, that His grace is sufficient for me. Strength is made perfect in weakness.
I failed my driving competency tests sixteen times. It was during the seventeenth attempt in Plumtree when I finally got the license. Failing to get a license is very humbling, frustrating, humiliating and even annoying. Yet, the Lord taught me valuable lessons about driving from these failures. The Lord used this to stress caution on the highway. The failure has taught me to drive carefully. If my license is canceled, it cannot be easy to go back for another competency exam.
I have flopped in my preaching. The worst was in Sipepa, Tsholotsho in 1997. I had earlier visited the place to preach at a camp meeting and I received a follow up invitation to preach during a guest day. To me, it was a confirmation of the impact of my preaching. The oral and flattering feedback to my preaching was still fresh in my mind. I was ready to show the church that this was not just a bluff. I never prayed much in preparation for the guest day. Not because I did not believe in prayer but I never felt helpless and feeble.
There was not much sense of desperation in me to impress upon my mind the urgency need of Divine power. The sermon was long. Over an hour. I had not planned to preach for an hour but the the dearth of exuberant feedback made me to tarry longer in anticipation of that climactic moment. It never came. The climactic moment actually came in the afternoon when Spirit moved brother without any Theological training spoke for five minutes. The church wondered where such a man was in the morning. If I had not failed, I would not have known that God's work is not dependent upon our reputation. Each day needs a new commitment to Him.
I recently failed a Hebrew challenge exam. Challenging the exam would have helped me avoid taking a Hebrew class. Failure just deflates our ego. If I had not failed, I would have missed the opportunity of sitting at the feet of Correa, great Old Testament scholar. He teaches Hebrew painfully. The long and tedious way. He also gives impromptu oral quizzes. He simply greets you in Hebrew, if you fail to respond, you have failed the quiz. Or he asks you what you are doing at school. He just made everyone unsettled and committed to learn Hebrew. Reciting the Shema in Hebrew was just something else. Shema Yisraeli, Adonai Elohenu, Adonai ehad,...
If I had not failed, I would have missed the long route. Shortcuts at times deny us the great opportunities to learn valuable issues in life
I hate failure. Am not planning for it. But if it revisits me (which I fear it do), I have to remember that He is not done with me yet. He still directs our paths even in rugged roads.
Paul could testify in 2 Corinthians 12:9, that His grace is sufficient for me. Strength is made perfect in weakness.