The Inevitable Failure

Bush was a failure.  On that failure and its ruins a new president is building a new success and optimism.  So while the Americans smilingly complimented me on coming from the happiest people in the world, I may this time compliment my American friends on their new achieved happiness with the ecstatic slogan “Yes, we can!”  Most of the world shouts with joy too and identifies itself with that new “change”.

I admit I can´t wholeheartedly take part in that man made and idolized optimism which will some day appear to be another failure. That doesn´t mean that I´ll soon set my foot on American soil as an enemy of its people or leadership.  On the contrary, I´m so grateful that I´m still coming to a free country where I´ll not be put in jail for confessing Christ. But again, that won´t, by no means, secure my success in the US, but rather my failure.

As a fellow creature I boldly identify myself with Bush´s failure.  He made wrong decisions, but so have I.  He once testified that Christ had come into his life and changed it completely making him only the more lonely.  This is also my story.  While the circulating security fighters guarding The While House were the only monotonous sounds up in the air that broke the morning stillness, he had his own private quiet time with God and His word, which, however, led to little or no praise from his people.  His faith in Christ didn´t exempt him from failure.  My heart goes out to him for that.

I once confided in a man of God moaning about my lack of success..  He replied, “How much success did Jeremiah have?” He was right.  How much success did the apostle Paul have?  Very little.  He didn´t have any modern platform with “good” music and sentimental worship shows and worship leaders to cheer him up.  His ministry was often a prison ministry.  His streamlined, Christian and “spiritual” opponents looked at him as a failure.

Are you a failure for the sake of Christ?  Take glory in it!  Calvary was, from the world´s point of view, a failure.  And yet it was the wisdom of God and His means of saving us.  The path of His disciples will be paved with failures too.  The beginning of New Tribes Mission was a story of failure with many lives lost.  The reaction from the world was not as painful as the reaction from worldly Christians who scorned a pitiful mission like that.

So be bold!  “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry!”  2 Tim 4:5.  In the Lord´s way.

-jn