Rising From Failure

Sooo… I failed a class in medical school.

Yes, you read that right. It was some time in February 2019 and I was excited to see my transcript as I thought I had done well on all of my final exams. So you can imagine the shock on my face when I saw an F on my transcript. Now, I could go on and give countless reasons as to why I think I failed that particular course but it won’t change the fact that I failed. 

Yes, it is true that failure sucks, especially when you feel like you gave it your all and you prayed for success but you still didn’t succeed. It hurts, man. In the past, when I failed at something, I would be sad for days and even cry like a baby. I would beat myself up and think that I was a failure. In fact, there was a time in high school when I got all A’s and two B’s on my report card and I literally cried because I didn’t get straight A’s like I’d hoped. My sisters still make fun of me till this day.

Though I do not jump up and down with enthusiasm when I fail now, I have learned to develop a different mindset for failure. When I failed that course, I literally had a candid conversation with God. I asked Him what He wanted me to learn from this failure and how I could gather up the courage to continue. Here are some of the things God reminded me of and is continuing to remind me of.

1. Failure is a wakeup call.
   • As I was reflecting on the final exam I took for that class, I asked myself, did I give it my absolute all? To be honest, I didn’t and I had my reasons for why I didn’t. I realized that not giving it my all on just one exam caused me to fail the entire class and this was a wakeup call for me. I was slacking. Thankfully, I was given another opportunity to redeem myself. After you have failed at something, reflect and ask yourself if you truly gave it your all.
2. Failure gives you an opportunity to learn new things.
   • Sometimes in the midst of a task, you may not get everything that you were supposed to get the first time around. For me, when I was given another chance to retake the exam, I completely changed the way I was studying for that particular class. Obviously, what I was doing before did not work. I assure you I got a much clearer understanding of the subject because I had a different mindset this time around. After you have failed at something (it doesn’t have to be an exam), ask yourself what you need to work on internally and externally. Maybe, just maybe, the way you approached it the first time was not the best way. Be open to a new way of approaching the task.
3. Failure is humbling.
   • Ooohh this was a hard one for me to come to terms with. If you think you know everything, failure will surely assure you that you absolutely do not. And quite frankly, that’s okay. Admitting my failure to my parents and even some of my friends made me feel embarrassed but their response towards it was encouraging.

I truly believe that God allows us to go through failures and setbacks to teach us some things. Successful people were not and are not always successful. I have learned to depend even more on God during my time in medical school. I was actually dreading sharing this because I didn’t want to expose my weakness/failures to the world. But God reminded me of His word in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. As I boast in this weakness, the power of God is made manifest in me.

My goal is not tell you to strive for failure. Who wants to fail? No one! What I am trying to convey is that if you know that you tried doing something, gave it your all (or not), and still failed in the end, it is not the end. Cry if you must, leave the room and be alone for a bit, talk to someone or some people about it. But after a few minutes or hours, or even days, begin to encourage yourself. Arise and speak life into that situation. Ask God to show you what He wants you to gain out of that experience. Depend on Him to continue to work things out for the good, just as He has promised to do for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Trust Him to give you the endurance to pick up that task again and do better on it. Begin to remind yourself of whose child you are and the power you have within you. Proclaim declarations and assure yourself and the devil that you are more than a conqueror. A set back is not, should not and will not take you down. It is preparing you for greater and bigger things, in Jesus’ Name.

You have victory within you.

Song Reminder : What Can I Do – Tye Tribbett

Has God turned a failure around for you? Comment and share your testimony below so others may be encouraged.