They Need to See Your Defeat

“Keep your eyes on the Lord! You will shine like the sun and never blush with shame.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34:5‬ ‭CEV‬‬

“ bring me down, can’t nuthin bring me down. Your love is too high to bring me down”

 ~Pharrell

Have you ever tripped so hard that you wished you would’ve fallen? I mean the type of trip that you look around to see if anyone saw you or causes you to say sorry to an inanimate object like the ground or has this foolishness only happened to me???

Sometimes what seems to be our biggest trip up happens in-front everyone... I mean EVERYONE and you are simply mortified. If you’re having trouble recalling a time pardon me while I borrow a page from Sophia Petrillo ... picture it Winston-Salem 2014 my wedding day.

Our ceremony was beautiful and smiles were now taking over where there were once tears of joy. As my groom and I prepared to jump the boom as they announced we were husband and wife I noticed out of the corner of my eye the runner had a small pucker in it and it wasn’t lying flat against the floor. After we jumped the broom successfully I was thinking “whew Lord thank you for answering my prayer this morning that I didn’t want to fall”... within 2 seconds of that breath, I was on the ground! Yep, in all that wedding gown in front of 250 people and my new husband. My mom immediately reached her hand down to help me up and I said: “no nope, I got it from here”. I quickly flipped myself up onto my feet and proceeded to dance to Pharrell’s “happy” like nothing happened. However, I was mortified and totally embarrassed that me of all people fell at her wedding. I hate being embarrassed especially since I don’t embarrass easy but that hot muggy summer day I certainly was.

As we went to sign our marriage license my father in love overheard me fussing about me falling and he reminded me that our loved ones were there to celebrate us and to not focus on it because it wouldn’t be remembered and it didn’t matter. As I sat and thought back on that day God spoke and said people need to see your defeats, your trips and your falls otherwise they’ll never try.

I’m thinking “God seriously, me falling causes someone to try”? Yes, indeed those moments do, and this my friends is why He’s ALWAYS right. When our biggest fears result in what we deem as defeat or a major failure it shows those on the sidelines that failing at something or falling down while doing it is inevitable. It is simply a part of the process. Furthermore, God loves you and I so much that He’s constantly celebrating us even in those moments. How can we know that is true? Easy, it’s because His mercies are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness. He knows we’re gonna get up once more, forgive again, trust and believe in that vision again simply because we have the heart to first obey and more importantly we have Him. In the long run it won’t be remembered or thought of.

There’s a whole world waiting on your yes to get started or restarted. There’s one person waiting and watching, hoping you don’t let fear stop you from pushing forward.

Are you afraid of looking foolish by doing what God has asked you to do? Are you afraid you’ve fallen too many times and are now wondering how you can redeem your past trip-ups? Don’t worry, God will and is working all of this together for your good just go ahead and jump already there’s someone waiting to see all the successes and defeats to know they too can do it.

Lord, thank you that Jesus’ yes was stronger than the fear of going to the cross. Let my yes be stronger than my fear of looking foolish for Your will to be done. As long as I have you to cheer me on and celebrate me that’s all I need. ~ Amen