32 And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets.
Hebrews 11:32
I learnt a powerful lesson in the story of Samson: God never takes cognizance of your failure. In Hebrews chapter 11, Paul lists the names of the saints in the “Faith Roll Call.” In that listing, Samson was one of the heroes mentioned. If your mind is renewed, you will take this: only your success stories are recorded. No single mistake that I have ever made as a Christian is on record; the only stories recorded are my success stories. Even when Abraham lied, it is no longer mentioned again in the Bible. God does not keep records of your failures as long as you are ready to call on Him. It was only the exploits of Samson that God remembered, not his conquest by the Philistines through Delilah.
It is said that Thomas Edison who discovered the electric light bulb, attempted one thousand times before he finally made his great invention. Concerning this he said, “I only discovered nine hundred and ninety nine ways by which the electric light bulb will not work.” That is the kind of heart that I want to implant in you; that is the heart of excellence. That is the heart of courage. That is the heart that presses on. That is the heart that fails once, twice, but keeps trying until it succeeds. Try again.
Not only should you succeed in the same place where you have failed, but in addition, expect a greater miracle. The Bible says that Samson prayed unto God and he pulled down the pillars of the temple and the people died. The people Samson killed at his death far exceeded the ones he killed in his life- time (Judges 16:25-30). He had succeeded and achieved more in the same place where he failed. If you must flow in the miracle of another chance, you must be willing to walk in the same place where you have failed. If the occasion demands that you do so, you can succeed there, and knowing that God records only your success stories should motivate you.
Confession: Thank You Father because You do not take my failures into cognizance; only my success stories are recorded and remembered. Your commitment to my success inspires and motivates me to succeed.