Failing Vs. Failure

Jeremiah 8:4 Once again give them this message from the Lord: When a person falls, he jumps up again; when he is on the wrong road and discovers his mistake, he goes back to the fork where he made the wrong turn. But these people keep on along their evil path, even though I warn them.

I had a friend of mine proof my website recently. She’s an English teacher and has a permanent red pen ready in her brain at all times!! Thanks Michele!! She told me that she was curious why I chose the word Failings instead of Failures in the name of my website. I wish I had the eloquent answer that she discovered when she did a web search for the difference. However, honestly, I just thought it sounded better. She told me that I needed to look up the difference between failing and failure. She said it fit the theme of my site perfectly. I did, in fact, go look around for the difference. The main difference I found was Failing is a temporary situation if you choose to make it temporary. Failure is permanent. It is something you choose to stay in instead of making a change.

Definitions:

Failing: a usually slight or insignificant defect in character, conduct, or ability.

[https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/failing]

Failure: lack of success, a falling short. [https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/failure]

I also found this post that shows a great example of the differences.

As you can see, by happy coincidence, I chose the right word in the name of my site. The journey of grace is a beautiful, crazy, path of ups and downs, of falling and getting back up. We are never considered failures in God’s eyes, because even if we sit down and think we want to give up, the Holy Spirit will not allow someone who is a true child of God to just give up! I know, I’ve tried a few times. Each time I find myself staying down after a fall, God comes up behind me and gently nudges me to get up. We have all experienced truly awful falls. The kind that make you think I will NOT recover, no one will ever respect me or take me seriously again, or the kind of falls that we pray no one will ever find out about. Regardless of how big or drastic the fall may be, it’s only considered a failure if you let it define who you are instead of making it a lesson that allows for growth in your life.

I am a big believer that music can help cement a truth from God. As I was thinking about this post this morning, Mandisa's Unfinished song came on in my truck. I believe it is a perfect compliment to this subject.

Mandisa - Unfinished (Lyric Video)

https://youtu.be/Ejycllx5iwA