How to overcome failure and achieve success - Christian Personal Development
I believe everyone should be interested in learning how to overcome failure and achieve success. It should be natural and I believe it is more natural to a Christian to desire to learn how to achieve success and to overcome failure as a result of the great work of sacrifice Jesus did on the Cross at Calvary.
This pillar post on how to overcome failure and achieve success will surely help you. The post will show you practically how to achieve a goal easily following the principles from God’s Word. I want you to enjoy and let me read your comment at the end of the post.
Quick Navigation
- What does it mean to overcome failure and achieve success
- Is it wrong for achievers to make heaven?
- Overcoming failure and achieving success is proof of Christianity
- Christians who overcame failure and achieve success
- What Can You Learn From The Prodigal Son?
- You Must Have Good Understanding of Who You Are
- Jesus’ ‘I am’ statements
- You Must Have Good Understanding of Your Inheritance
- You Must Be Bold to overcome failure and achieve success
- You Must Have the Integrity to achieve success
- You Must Be a Thinker
- You Must be a Great Planner to overcome failure and achieve success
- You Must be a Great Action Taker
What does it mean to overcome failure and achieve success
The following story will show you what it means to overcome failure and achieve success. Please enjoy the story.
Have you read the story Jesus told in Luke Chapter 16 verse 19-31 about a poor man Lazarus and the rich man. It’s a popular story. Lazarus was righteous but poor (and I believe he must have gone through this world without any Christian achievement whatsoever).
The rich man was unrighteous but rich. There was no record in the Bible about how he amassed his wealth but we understood that he was an ungodly man. Now Lazarus, the poor man with no tangible Christian achievement made heaven but the rich man did not make it.
I agree it was great for Lazarus to make heaven. That’s the ultimate for anyone who will walk the surface of this earth. No matter what you do or achieve on this earth, if you don’t make heaven, you have lost all!
The rich man with all his achievements lost all because he did not make heaven. I am glad you are here to learn how to overcome failure and achieve success but you would have lost all if you achieve all and overcome all the failures in your life and fail to make heaven!
Related: You may like this video on how to use your potentials effectively
Is it wrong for achievers to make heaven?
The answer is a straight NO! It’s right and that’s exactly what God wants. You became a Christian to turn the world around with your achievements for Christ.
Paul said very boldly, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13). Jesus taught the necessity for Godly Christian achievements in the popular Parable of Talents. I strongly believe Lazarus must have missed out on something for him to walk the surface of this earth poor and as a non-achiever!
God’s Word says “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11). He also says in 3 John 2 “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers.”
Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 4:20, “For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power”. The Message translation puts that verse this way: “God’s way is not a matter of mere talk; it’s an empowered life.” An empowered life to show the God stuff you’re made of.
Overcoming failure and achieving success is proof of Christianity
Your Christian achievements on this earth are to show God’s signs and wonders to non-Christians. You must have results to show on this earth to demonstrate a strong proof of your Christianity. The world in your community, society or country must look towards you, your company and your organization for solutions to their problems. Let God live His life out of you on this earth.
You must be an achieving Christian. I thank God that we have had lots of great Christian achievers on this earth since Bible days. These examples are great proofs of what God wants from you and I. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Joseph, Elijah, Elisha, Moses, Peter, Paul etc. were great Christian achievers.
Jesus also showed us what it takes to be great achievers on this earth. He achieved great things on this earth and at the end, the Bible says this: “Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow (Philippians 2:9-10) (NLT).
You must be an achieving Christian. You should read the Bible Short Report, Jesus and Your Success. I always include the download link in our email newsletter, Bible Short Reports. If you are yet to subscribe to this newsletter, you should do so at bible short reports
Related: A kingdom principle for success
Christians who overcame failure and achieve success
There are also many post-Bible days’ Christian achievers. People who lived great lives and achieved great things for God on this earth with the great projects they completed. You will find them in Christian ministry, sports, industries etc.
These are people who relied only on God’s Word, Godly principles and powers to churn out great projects upon projects. These are people who turned failures to successes and victories. People who are exceptionally committed to the Godly cause of winning the world to Christ with their conducts and achievements.
You should be like them too. This post will teach you some of the principles they followed to achieve great things in Christ Jesus. I want to give the Holy Spirit all the glory for the opportunity to write this post.
What Can You Learn From The Prodigal Son?
“A certain man had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood. And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living” (Luke 15:11-13).
I have read this popular story from Jesus Christ on many occasions. I believe you must have done so too. If you have not done that, you should do so from the passage quoted immediately above.
We have all criticized or loathed what the prodigal son did. He asked for his inheritance from his father, left home and wasted all in careless living in a foreign country. However, God’s Spirit has helped me to bring out some great success principles from this story.
I had to agree with the Holy Spirit when I saw these principles. The Holy Spirit of God dictates things in my life and my ministry. It’s His show, not mine so I have to listen to Him when he talks or shows me things. The principles I will be showing you in this post were taken from the story of the Prodigal son.
You Must Have Good Understanding of Who You Are
If you want to truly learn how to overcome failure and achieve success, then you need to understand who you are. This very important. Read this story below:
“A certain man had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me’ (Luke 15:12).
This is usually the roots of the problems of lots of Christians who underachieved or who are underachieving. They lack the knowledge of who they are. They lack adequate information and understanding of their Christian status. They don’t know the Father they have in God almighty.
The prodigal son knew this. He knew he had a very rich father. He knew he had an inheritance which should come from his father to him. He knew who he was.
Jesus’ ‘I am’ statements
For many years now I have studied the different ‘I am’ statements of Jesus Christ during His ministry. He was fond of saying: “I am the Vine; “I’m the Door to the sheep”; “I’m the Good Shepherd”; “I’m the Way, the Truth, and the Life”. He said all these under intense pressure and criticisms by the elders of the Jews, the Sadducees and the Pharisees.
Whatever the pressure, a good understanding of who He was would always keep Him focused on what He wanted to achieve. Jesus practically used His words and confessions of who He was when he was here on the earth to overcome failure and to achieve success.
Christianity turns you into a person in the class of God. Jesus said, “As I am so you are”.
You must have a good understanding of who you are in Christ. The prodigal son wouldn’t have approached his father if he was not aware of who he was or his sonship status in the house of his father. Agreed he was not ready when he approached his father but that’s another topic for another post. The success principles you should pick up from here is that he knew who he was, he understood his sonship status and this pushed him to approach his father.
Most Christians are reluctant and afraid to ask God for wealth-building ideas! God’s happy and ready to give you great ideas if you ask Him. You’re a son and you’re dear to Him. He wants to give you the power to achieve great things on this earth.
Related: How to take the most important decisions of your life
You Must Have Good Understanding of Your Inheritance
Understanding your inheritance is also very important for you to achieve success on this earth. Read what the Prodigal son said to his father:
“Give me the portion of goods that fall to me” (Luke 15:12)
It’s one thing for you to understand your sonship status; it’s another thing for you to know the benefits and inheritance that belongs to you.
Because you’re born again, you’re a candidate that’s qualified to receive God’s power that can make you achieve great things on this earth. You should ask for His power in your life to achieve great things on this earth. Ask in the place of prayer and wait to receive instructions from Him on how He wants to demonstrate His power through you.
The following relevant Bible passages should inspire and teach you about this topic:
- “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him (2 Chronicles 16:9).
- “And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you the power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers ” (Deuteronomy 8:18).
- Jesus also directed His disciples before He ascended to heaven to wait for the power to achieve great things after He must have gone (Acts 1: 8).
God wants to give you the power to achieve great things on this earth. This is one of the inheritances you have in Him.
You should also ask God for wealth and riches, these are also part of your inheritance in Him. The earth is the Lord’s and its fullness thereof (Psalm 24). Jesus is the Lord of the earth and the Son of God and because you are joint-heirs with Jesus, then all He owns is yours. So ask Him and it shall be given to you (Mathew 7:7).
I want you to note that when you ask Him for wealth, riches, power, you should wait to receive instructions from Him on how He wants to demonstrate all these through you and what He would require you do. This is important.
I learned this by experience. Sometimes ago, I prayed hard to Him to give me wealth and riches to massively distribute one of the free ebooks on our stable then as a paperback. What I got from Him was a revelation of what I must begin to do.
The prodigal son said to his father, “Give me the portion of goods that fall to me”. He did not ask for the portion that falls to his brother or anyone else but the ones that fall to him. He knew and was sure he had personal entitlements or benefits from being a son to his father.
You Must Be Bold to overcome failure and achieve success
“And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living” (Luke 15:13)
Someone said, “The earth will only give you what you demand.” I strongly believe this especially from the different success stories of people I have read.
At the early stage of my Christian life, God shared with me the content of the book of Joshua Chapter 1 in a revelation where God asked Joshua to be “strong and courageous”. God observed that Joshua must have felt intimidated by the enormous task and responsibilities of stepping into the big shoes of Moses, the great Prophet of God who God sent to liberate His people from the powerful Egyptian nation with just a simple rod! God had to use the content of Joshua chapter 1 to motivate Joshua and asked him to be bold.
Most Christians are underachieving because they are not bold. Most Christians have allowed themselves to live their lives in the cage of fear. I wrote the book, How to Exit the Cage of Fear. You should subscribe and download it and others here.
I have studied the lives of many Christians and non-Christian achievers and I observed they all have the tendency to have fear stop them from achieving. It’s just that they have found a way of stopping fear and putting it in its own cage. They have chosen to be bold and courageous!
Related: My Online video course, How to stop fear spiritually will be useful here. Enroll at the stop fear video course.
The prodigal son was bold. He took the initiative to approach his father, collect his inheritance and leave the comfort of his father’s wealthy home to live on his own. The Bible says, “he journeyed to a far country”.
He did not stay in the neighborhood. He went out to get experience. Most Christians don’t go out to get a fresh experience. They have remained on the same job for many years doing the same things over and over again. They have done the same things in their businesses over and over again. They have not learned anything new since they left school!
I’m not surprised they have not been achieving! I want you to note from the story of the prodigal son that after the father gave him his inheritance, he did not send him out. He was the one who took the bold initiative to go out to a far country on his own.
Related: How to fight off the threat of demonic fear
You Must Have the Integrity to achieve success
“But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land and he began to be in want. Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.” Luke 15:14-15
The prodigal son wasted his inheritance in riotous living. However, instead of embracing the devil’s strategy to go into shady deals, ungodly businesses, or robbery to continue to live the wealthy lifestyle he was used to, he took the route of work!
I believe from this section you should begin to see clearly the hidden achievers’ qualities of the prodigal son. I have seen lots of self-acclaimed Christians who have done shady things and businesses to achieve great things on this earth. These Christians have cut off God’s great power from them which is important and necessary for them to be super Christian achievers on this earth.
Lots of Christians lack integrity. They openly demonstrate the lack of integrity in their businesses, offices and in their neighborhood. Many of these have blamed the prodigal son in their teachings and discussions but have themselves lacked the Christian integrity the prodigal son demonstrated when he chose to do a demeaning job instead of embracing shady deals.
Under the intense pressure of lack, hunger and want he chose the route of integrity. You should also make this choice. It’s one of the super qualities of Christian achievers on this earth.
You Must Be a Thinker
If you want to learn what the great achievers of our world have learned about how to overcome failure and achieve success, then you need to be a great thinker. let us look at what the prodigal son did with this.
“But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son” (Luke 15:17 -19).
I once read that Bishop David Oyedepo, the President of the Living Faith Church worldwide, one of the fastest-growing Pentecostal churches in the world whose ministry built a world record 50000 capacity auditorium in a record one year has a thinking room. I learned he does nothing in this room except to think.
John Maxwell’s book, How Successful People Think had a great impact on me when I read it. The book showed how great achievement is not possible on this earth without a lifestyle of good and positive thinking. The prodigal son used reflective thinking to get himself out of trouble.
I want you to carefully look at the way he carried out his reflection. It was a masterpiece! He did not deceive himself. He did not mull over his present situations. He did not blame anyone for his situation either.
He went down through his thoughts to the important facts about his root, his sonship status, and the riches of his father. He also knew the nature of his father. He was sure he would take him back!
Many Christians have underachieved because they have allowed negative thoughts to dominate their minds. They have not used the platform of reflecting thinking properly. They have not addressed issues with their thoughts using the truths from God’s Word as the basis.
You can always think yourself out of trouble and think yourself into great achievements on this earth. All great Christian achievers have been great thinkers.
I usually pause for one day or two during a many-day prayer and fasting session to think all through. Most of the things I have achieved have been birthed when I take a walk to think.
I want you to read the contents of the thoughts of the prodigal son again:
“But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son” (Luke 15:17 -19).
That should inspire you.
Related: How mental works can give maximum results
You Must be a Great Planner to overcome failure and achieve success
“I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” (Luke 15:18)
When God decided to answer the prayers of myself and my wife about achieving Godly success on our tasks and in ministry, He helped us to understand the value and benefits of planning.
God helped us to form the habit of planning on paper whenever we want to spend to undertake a project no matter how small it is. Planning became second nature to us in everything we do.
God will not do much with you and you will not achieve much on this earth if you’re not a good planner and a good manager of resources! Good planners are a good manager of resources.
I believe Jesus made the statement in John 9:4, “I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work” after He looked at His to-do list on paper. He saw the enormous work in front of Him and He made the statement in that passage.
This is what paper planning gives to you; it helps you to see at a glance what you have to do to achieve great things. You will always want to run and put in efforts to achieve great things.
You should note how the prodigal son thought out solutions to his problems and the step by step plans he would take to achieve his plans. In today’s world, he would have written those plans he created in his thoughts on paper to have a record or plans he would follow to achieve his aims.
When the plans are born out of a genuine desire to achieve Godly project, God will be ready to help you to follow your plans to achieve it. The Bible says, “The preparations of the heart belong to man, But the answer of the tongue is for God” (Proverbs 16:9).
The prodigal son’s plan was born out of a genuine desire to achieve a Godly project. His good thought created that plan. He planned in his thoughts: “I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” God helped him to follow his plans through.
Related: How to develop the passion power to get tasks completed
You Must Be A Quick-Action Taker
“And he arose and came to his father…And the son said to him, ‘Father I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son” (Luke 15: 20 -21).
Taking timely actions on tasks plans and ideas are what crown your efforts. Results or achievements can’t be seen except you take action on your plans. Jesus said, “I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work (John 9:4)
I know a friend who was always full of ideas but not full of actions. He was always not full of results.
I learned by practice to take quick actions on some ideas and plans. These types of ideas and plans require you to rise and do anything you have to do (no matter how simple it is) to kick start series of further actions on them.
If you fail to take quick actions on these types of ideas and plans you may end up not taking any action at all on them. Many distractions and obstacles will set in to take your focus away from what should have been a growth-stimulating or profit-enhancing idea.
Agreed, there are some ideas or plans which you may not need to take quick actions on them. This is usually the case when you’re presently executing another idea or following through another plan. Therefore in order to avoid what I call ‘conflict of execution’ you may have to write out these ideas and plans of execution in your idea book for future execution.
There are also some ideas and plans which require you to carry out a series of extensive researches before you can begin to execute them. I believe if you find yourself in this situation you should begin the process of research immediately. At least this is also representing an action you’re taking on the task.
The prodigal son thought out his plans and immediately took quick action on his plans. The Bible records that “And he arose and came to his father”.
That’s one of the secrets of high-flying Christian achievers. They’re not just wishers, they’re action takers. The prodigal son arose immediately to act out his plans.
Thank God he did that. Other events and distractions would have overtaken his Godly resolution to go back to his father. He would have ended up as a poor, wretched servant of another rich man for the rest of his life!
Now bring out those ideas you have kept on paper for many years now that are already gathering dust. Pick one of them and make a decision to work on it. After making a decision, you need to arise just like the prodigal son and push yourself to act on the simplest task in your plans of execution.
Related: Christians in Business: Why you must take marketing a actions
Conclusion
Thank you for reading this post and I want to belive it helped you. please let me read your comments and don’t forget to share this article with your friends. Finally, I want you to look at the section headlines again below.
Sections for how to overcome failure and achieve success:
- What does it mean to overcome failure and achieve success
- Is it wrong for achievers to make heaven?
- Overcoming failure and achieving success is proof of Christianity
- Christians who overcame failure and achieve success
- What Can You Learn From The Prodigal Son?
- You Must Have Good Understanding of Who You Are
- Jesus’ ‘I am’ statements
- You Must Have Good Understanding of Your Inheritance
- You Must Be Bold to overcome failure and achieve success
- You Must Have the Integrity to achieve success
- You Must Be a Thinker
- You Must be a Great Planner
- You Must Be A Quick-Action Taker
How to Maintain Focus and Concentration: practical tips on how to reach the end of projects
How to maintain focus and concentration will help you to handle distractions.
It will help you to keep your focus on your business goals. It contains practical tips on how you can keep up the momentum when you start a business project until the end of the project.
Most times, it appears very easy to kick start a project, a company, an idea or an organization but it takes a lot of works if the project or idea will move from the starting point to the finish point.
In between these two important stages is the middle stage where the project executor needs lots of focus and concentration on the project. Usually, lots of distractions come around and lots of obstacles come knocking. You, the project executor must learn to keep these and any other “unwanted guests” away from yourself and your project.
