There Is No Growth Without Failure

(Today's Music: Bounce by Thousand Foot Krutch)

Lesson Four: There Is No Growth Without Failure

And so we graduate from the repeatable phrases that can be yelled in the pre-game huddle to the underlying messages about basketball, about all sports, and about life in general.

Lesson four is one of the basic instructions that lurks behind the cries of "Not Today!" and "It Doesn't Matter!" Not Today sets an attitude of success and a determination not to fail. It Doesn't Matter accepts past failures and dismisses their relevance to the present. But while an attitude that focuses on success and doesn't dwell on failures is important to achieving success, the cold hard truth is this:

No one grows through success.

Success boosts confidence and that's a good thing. Success helps build a positive self-image and creates a bond amongst teammates. Also a good thing. I'm not saying that success is bad. If success was bad, we wouldn't pursue it. Success is an end for which we all strive. But success is an end. Success, by it's very implied nature, means you're done. You finished and you won. There is nothing left to do. There's no more growing to do.

And where self-confidence and positive self-image are great things, they aren't growth. Growth, fortitude, integrity, and character are a sword forged in the searing fire of failure. These are the weapons used to endure future trials.

In the end, feelings of self-worth won't bring about the Kingdom of God. Character will.

Self confidence is, especially in young men, a brittle thing. It can be easily constructed and even more easily destroyed. The point of growth is not to change what you are, but to change who you are.

Success, once achieved, requires no more effort. Failure requires work to overcome.

Failure often requires introspection. Failure means examining the details, identifying things that need to change, then changing them. Of course, when we're talking about our personalities, making changes is no trivial task.

In John 15 Jesus says, "[The Father] cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful." We, the Christians of the world, are the branches from the Vine. When we live for Christ, we bear fruit. But we still sin every day. We still covet things and strive for things that have nothing to do with glorifying God. These are branches that God prunes. The method of pruning is often personal failure. Why? Because, like weeds, branches that bear no fruit suck vital nutrients from the branches that do bear fruit. If your mind is focused on wealth or power or sex, then it is distracted from what God wants you to be doing. And so we screw up and the money is gone. We fail and our power disappears. And now, when we've told ourselves It Doesn't Matter and we've pushed our self-pity aside, we can look at the failure and recognize it for what it was - God gift of an opportunity to grow to be more like Him.

So, again, what does this mean for the boys on my team? It means this: Declare that you will not fail today, but don't be afraid of failure. Fear of failure means fear of growth and learning. Failure is a powerful tool that you can use to build a better, more lasting success later. Don't dwell on failure when it occurs by immersing yourself in self-pity, but examine your failure to identify why you failed, then establish a plan to change it.

Boys, you're 14 years old. Right now, everything about you seems to be about growing. So use everything you are right now to strive for success. And when you fail, grow. Become something bigger and better and new. Then do it again.