Diets, a business venture, relationships, setting boundaries and achieving goals are just a few of the many things I’ve failed at.

Failure is as much a part of my life as succeeding.

You’d think I’d simply stop trying just to avoid failing. And for a while I did.

I mean, who wants falling flat on her face to be an ongoing thread in her story?

Trying to prevent failing comes at a price.

No risk means no reward.

It also means no fun, no thrill of a win, no sense of adventure or achievement, no evolving, no growth and no transformation of any kind.

But here’s what I know about failure.

Failure isn’t your foe it’s your teacher. It is an event not an identity.

The diet that didn’t work, the marriage that fell apart, the friendship that fizzled, the business venture that went bust are unfortunate events and experiences.

They are not indicators of your value.

I’ve failed. It’s an undeniable fact. Failure is only a problem when it becomes a feeling.

Allowing failure to become a emotion that creates feelings of unimportance, incompetence or unworthiness is draining.

Failure will either be the unlikely tool that beautifully transforms you or an ongoing tormentor that bullies you into staying stuck scrolling through social media pics of everyone else experiencing your desires.

The greatest men and women who’ve walked the halls of history have failed.

The woman at the well failed in five marriages. Peter failed to acknowledge his relationship with Christ. David failed to look away from Bathsheba.

God didn’t slap a label of “failure” on them and walk away. He won’t us either.

Don’t fear failure. Embrace it as your mentor and friend.

This one simple shift shakes up everything! This is your permission to fail!