I Felt Like Such A Failure

I used to view my mixed faith marriage as if it were broken and needed to be fixed. If I looked a little deeper, I made that mean I had failed.  Failure felt terrible and wasn't a catalyst for me to look for ways to make things better.   In fact, failure made me want to throw in the towel.  

Unless you are a student, getting a grade from a teacher, failure is simply not meeting your own expectations.  Even then, getting an F only means you failed if that is what you choose to believe.  Getting an F can be an opportunity to set yourself up for success in the future.  

Failure is an emotion that we feel when we think thoughts like:  I screwed that up, I shouldn't have eaten that, I am not a good mom, I shouldn't even try, or my mixed faith marriage is a mess.  We get to define failure AND  success for ourselves.  It all depends how we think about it. 

What if my marriage is actually the ideal place for me to learn the lessons that will help me become the best version of myself?  What if all the times I "messed up" were actually the perfect learning opportunities for me.  Each "failure" moving me away from who I was, leading me towards my potential?  Depending how I think about it, I am failing or I am progressing. It is my choice.  When I focus on the progress I have made instead of all the mishaps, I feel a heck of a lot better and will be more likely to keep trying.  I like to think of it as failing forward.  

Do you feel like a failure?  I would love to help you decide intentionally if your definition of failure is serving you.  Let's chat, I can help you.