06/11/2026
I heard a friend say today, “I welcome failure these days. Failure is the only opportunity I have to get better. I certainly don’t enjoy it any more than I used to, but I accept it because I know I will learn, grow, and ultimately fail less in the future.”
It is interesting how easily we accept this process in our children. Many of us have watched the painful and difficult process of teaching a child to ride a bike. We use those moments after wiping away a tear or putting ice on a scraped or bruised knee to teach and encourage. Then, we share in their elation as their momentary failures give way to the mastery of a new skill and the freedom and joy that result.
Our clients frequently come to us during incredibly painful and difficult seasons of life. Many arrive feeling a bit shell-shocked. Often, they have been “winning” for years and find themselves unsure of what to do when life suddenly falls short of their expectations. They don’t remember what to do with failure.
We gently remind them that the pain and suffering will exist whether they choose to use it or not. They can choose to endure the circumstances for the sake of mere survival, or they can choose to give their pain and suffering purpose. It can become the foundation upon which life takes on new, deeper meaning. It can serve as the catalyst for becoming a stronger, more resilient, and independent person. It can be the spark that lights a fire in one’s heart that can never be extinguished again, no matter how many rainstorms life brings.
![“It’s [suffering] the very thing we run from, avoid at all costs, dread, medicate, and deny that hold the secret to our ...](https://img4.lawfirms1.com/714/055/122133583857140555.jpg)
