Coach Pensley look out at his team surrounding him all on one knee. The silence stretched throughout the locker room.
The men looked battered with grass stains on their uniforms, hair matted down and skin glistening from sweat. The first half of the game had been brutal and now they were down ten points. When the team came into the locker room for half-time there was a sense of defeat and failure amongst the players.
Coach took a deep breath and broke the silence. “Our adversary probably think we are done and that we don’t have any more fight in us. They’re getting through our defense line. Undoubtedly, right now, they are celebrating in their locker room thinking that this championship is theirs.”
Each man became enwrapped in the coach’s motivational speech. One by one, each member lifted their head and straightened their shoulders.
“Is this what you want? You want to live the rest of your life knowing you didn’t give it all today?”
Coach Pensley could see the start of hope and determination beginning to shine on each man’s face. Adrenaline was starting to pump through their veins.
“You have worked hard and made sacrifices to get here today. This is your day. This is your moment. Take hold of it and grasp it like there’s no tomorrow.”
Team members started to nod their heads in agreement. Coach could feel the intensity of the atmosphere build.
“No one can hold you back. The Championship is for you to take.”
A few “yes” and grunts came from the men spurring the Coach on to the finally of his speech.
“You were made for this moment. No one can take this championship from you.”
More grunts and “yes”. The room doesn’t seem big enough now. The players are getting fired up like caged lions ready to pounce.
The coach took one quick look at his team and felt satisfied that these men are ready to get back out on the field and win this championship.
With a loud voice the coach finished his speech. “Failure is not an option because forever is about to happen here in just a few minutes! Let’s get out there and take that trophy home!”
The team jump up and came into a closed circle. They piled one hand on top of another then at once they yelled, “Go!”
I would like to say that I know the ending of this story. But, I don’t.
You’re probably wondering, why tell this story. I will explain in just a bit but first let’s talk about failure.
I have had some whopper of failures in my life such as; I failed at two marriages that ended up in divorce, I flunked out of the same math class twice with the same teacher then I proceeded to flunk out of college, I failed my nursing exam, and I had two miscarriages. Failure is no stranger to me.
So, when someone tells me, “Failure is not an option.” I say phooey on them. I mean, what do I do if I fail? Will the failure police come after me and arrest me? Probably not.
Failure is an option. In fact, failure is part of life.
If we let it, failure can become a giant in our life that we find hard to tackle. I could have let my two divorces define me as a rejected and unworthy woman who couldn’t even hold her marriage together. But I’m not. I could have given up on college especially when the math teacher said, “I wasn’t good enough and that I should go do something else with my life.” Later I was accepted into nursing school. I failed the nursing exam and questioned myself if I was really doing the right thing or if I could really be a nurse. When I took the exam again, I passed with a 98% score. My miscarriages could have destroyed my inner being leaving me feeling hopeless of ever being a mom. Later, God blessed me with a son.
Thankfully my failures didn’t end there. I may have found a hiding place and licked my wounds for a while, but I didn’t stay there. This is the time when I start to pull myself up by my boot straps and put my game face on.
In the story above, about the team, the coach gives an inspirational speech to his team to motivate them to get back in the game and win the championship. Honestly, I wish I had my own personal motivational coach. But I don’t. So, the next best thing for me is a mirror.
I have had many conversations with myself in the mirror that have gone like this; “Ok, so you failed and made an idiot out of yourself. It’s time to finish your little pity party and get moving again. You have been showed how to not do this, so let’s do it the right way. You can do this! You go girl!”
I’m telling you, if you don’t have a mirror, then you need to get one. A decent size. Then have yourself a pep talk by talking to yourself in the mirror. It’s amazing how it can boost your self-confidence.
I also do a lot of praying and talking to the Lord. Here are some of my favorite scriptures that help motivate me and remind me of God’s promises.
Jeremiah 8:4 – Jeremiah, say this to the people of Judah: This is what the Lord says: You know if a man falls down, he gets up again. And if a man goes the wrong way, he turns around and comes back.
Proverbs 24:16 – The righteous may fall seven times but still get up, but the wicked will stumble into trouble.
2 Corinthians 4:9 – We are persecuted, but God does not leave us. We are hurt sometimes, but we are not destroyed.
Philippians 4:13 – I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
You can Google and find all kinds of amazing stories of how people have gone through failures and have come out the other side to live and tell about it. There are tons of motivational phrases about failure.
Don’t let failure stop you. Yes, failure is always an option because what comes next is success. YOU CAN DO THIS!
I would love to hear from you about a failure in your life and how you overcame it. If you’re going through a hard time and failure is dominating your life, reach out to me and I will pass on to you some inspirational words.
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