Daily Encounter: A Week-day Devotional by a staff of ACTS International.

Monday, September 23, 2013

"What is faith? It is the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead. Men of God in days of old were famous for their faith."¹

As it has been said, "If you want to hit home runs you've got to be willing to strike out." Top batters in baseball have all struck out many times. And most people who have succeeded in life have also struck out many times.

For example, Walt Disney went broke seven times and had a nervous breakdown before he became successful. At age 40 Henry Ford was broke. Enrico Caruso, who became one of the world's greatest tenors, was advised by his voice teacher to quit singing because he failed so many times to carry his high notes. Thomas Edison failed more than 6,000 times before he could get an electric light bulb to work, but when a child, one of his teachers once called him a dunce. Abraham Lincoln was well known for his many failures but became one of America's most beloved presidents. And Albert Einstein and Werner von Braun both flunked courses in mathematics. History is filled with similar stories.

The reason these people all succeeded is because they didn't quit. They believed they could succeed and they stuck with it until they did. As the old saying goes, "Quitters never win and winners never quit!" So, if you and I want to hit some home runs, we need to get out there, stand at the base and keep on swinging. Eventually we, too, will win if we "keep the faith" and never give up.

Furthermore, if you're genuinely seeking to do what you know God wants you to do, there will always be a way to do it. Faith says, "With God's help I'll find the way and I'll keep on trying!"

Remember, too, that the only real failure is not to get up one more time than we strike out or get knocked down. Remember, too, that in every failure God always has something valuable for us to learn. In fact, failure is often our greatest teacher, a blessing in disguise. The key issue is to follow your God-given dream and potential, and not allow failures to stop you!

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, help me to know for certain what my God-given life purpose and dream is, and with your help never give up no matter how great the challenges are. Help me also to realize that in every failure, you have a valuable lesson for me to learn. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

1. Hebrews 11:1-2 (TLB)(NLT).

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